


Unity and Growth: Let's See How Far We Go

by Twiggy31



Series: Alec's Accidentally Successful Mundane Life [4]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anxiety Attacks, Depression, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, M/M, Modeling, Mundane Alec Lightwood, Panic Attacks, Post-it Notes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-29
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:35:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 66,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22957273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Twiggy31/pseuds/Twiggy31
Summary: Alec and Magnus have survived a lot. From Alec being stripped of his runes to having been reunited for almost a year, their journey has had many ups and downs. Now it's time to see where their life takes them to the end.
Relationships: Clary Fray/Jace Wayland, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Simon Lewis/Isabelle Lightwood
Series: Alec's Accidentally Successful Mundane Life [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1221542
Comments: 106
Kudos: 193





	1. New Year, New Me... Not Really

**Author's Note:**

> **WARNINGS: Homophobic slurs, Fighting
> 
> After quite a few weeks, it's back! I'll continue posting every Friday unless stated otherwise. This part will go to the end. I hope you enjoy. Cheers!

In the cold grey weather in mid-January, Alec contently found himself trailing behind his club lady friends as they headed to dinner. Since the start of the new year, it was the first time they all managed to have the same night off. Thus Ash declared it Original Ladies Night and dragged everyone out for a night on the city. With no real reason to say no and missing their bi-monthly ladies night, everyone had agreed. 

To Alec’s surprise, the group ended up at a relatively nice restaurant. The kind you dressed a little nicer for for fear you wouldn’t be let in. Once everyone was sitting, the atmosphere was warm and familiar. They talked about how the holidays had been and how they managed to not go completely crazy. The table was laughing as the smiling waiter arrived to take their orders. Knowing exactly what they wanted, the table easily told the waiter their orders. After the man left Ash straightened up with a smile on her face. “So I know we already exchanged gifts like a month ago, but I saw these and couldn’t resist.” She dug into her bag before pulling out a card and a small gift bag for each of them. Everyone tried to stop her but she waved her hand. “I’ve already bought them. No take backs! I hope you like.” There was a bit of nervousness at the end that had Alec frowning. 

Once everyone had their gifts, they opened the card first as one does when receiving a gift. The outside was unassuming. A gold envelope with Alec’s name on it in Ash’s loopy handwriting. The front of the card was a matted picture of the group. The Nephilim vaguely remembered when they took it. He was pretty sure Magnus had actually been the one to snap the picture at one of their movie nights. Opening the card up he read the left side first: **Turns out I liked him a lot more than I originally planned…** Alec frowned as his eyes skipped to the right side. **Will you be my bridesman?** _Oh._ Alec thought in surprise. Although he wasn’t exactly aware of mundane traditions, he had watched enough movies with the girls to know what Ash was asking. Granted he never knew a guy could be a bridesmaid (or in this case bridesman), but he understood what she was asking. 

Finally looking up he realized he was slow to either reading his card or register what was being asked. The other ladies were already laughing and crying as they told Ash that they’d love to be in her bridal party. By the time Ash made it to him, she was a little shy clearly unsure what his answer would be. With a soft smile he nodded, “Yes Ash, I’ll be a bridesman.”

Squealing in delight, she launched herself at him. “Thank you!” He chuckled and patted her back not letting go until she was ready. Sitting back down with one of the biggest grins ever, she laughed, “Well, open the actual gift!” Everyone made a noise of surprise apparently completely forgetting that they did in fact have a gift waiting for them. Pulling it out, Alec unwrapped a small tumbler. It looked like it was made from dark blue and white marble. On one side it had **BRIDESMAN** and on the other the date of the wedding.

Petra looked at hers and whistled, “Already have a date?”

Ash nodded, “Yes. We’ve been talking about it for a while and have had over a month to start planning so we picked at least a month and year. We’ll have a more finalized date after we talk to the church we want to get married at.”

“That’s wonderful Ash,” Tara smiled, “I’m happy for you.”

“Thanks.” The young woman chirped.

Conversation halted as the waiter arrived with their meals. They shuffled the table around to fit everything and once satisfied they started digging in. After the first few bites, conversation started up again. “Alec? Have you been to many weddings before?” Mila asked thoroughly enjoying her steak.

Looking up, Alec said, “No. I don’t think I’ve ever been to on- ah.” He cringed realizing that wasn’t quite true.

The group perked up at his hesitation. “What does that mean?” Ash asked excitedly.

Alec scratched the back of his head, “I’ve technically been to one. Ah, my um my own?”

“What?!” The party yelled before turning around to quietly apologize to the other guests for yelling.

“Okay, explain. I don’t see a ring unless you’ve divorced.”

“No, I’ve never been married. It’s just-” Cutting himself off he collected his thoughts. It’s been a while since he’d thought about that fiasco or at least tried to explain it. “The… society I came from was tradition and as the eldest in my family I had certain… expectations. At the time my life was a mess and my family name wasn’t exactly in high regards. My parents were planning on setting up an arranged marriage anyway so I took things into my own hands and proposed.”

“Who was the lucky man?” Mila leaned forward trying to picture who it could have been. Obviously it wasn’t Magnus because she was pretty sure the wedding would have happened.

“Her name was Lydia.” Alec replied.

Frowning, Ash asked, “Did I miss you being bi?”

“No. It was before I was out. My sister knew and apparently Jace knew, but I was still trying to be straight. Trying to save my family’s reputation I asked Lydia to marry me. The marriage itself would have been beneficial for both of us. Obviously it didn’t work out.” Twirling his fork in his fingers, Alec’s eyes were glazed over as he remembered his wedding. “I was going to go through with it. Izzy threw me a ‘bachelor’ party which was really just talking to Jace since we had been fighting. Next day, I put on my suit, greeted some guests, and stood at the altar waiting for Lydia.”

“That’s when you realized you couldn’t go through with it.” Mila guessed.

Alec shook his head, “No, we were about to,” He knew he couldn’t say draw the Wedding rune on each other because they wouldn’t get it. So he changed it to, “Say our vows when Magnus barged in.”

“No. Fucking. Way.” Everyone’s mouths dropped.

“He walked down the aisle to about halfway and waited for me to throw him out.” He chuckled remembering how panicked he was, “I couldn’t breathe and was probably seconds away from a panic attack. I didn’t know what to do. It was Lydia who kind of saved my ass. If it wasn’t for her telling me it was okay and to be happy I probably would have married her. But when she told me it was okay, I turned towards Magnus, walked down the aisle, and ah kissed him… in front of everyone.” The table screeched. They were going to be thrown out if they continued being loud. “My parents were pissed and alas I didn’t really shine a good light on our name. Or at least not at that time.” Shrugging because he no longer cared, Alec finished with, “So that’s really the only wedding I’ve ever been to.”

“I can’t believe Magnus did that.” Mila blinked. “Holy shit.”

“You can’t?” Petra quirked an eyebrow. “You’ve met him, right?”

“I suppose you’re right.” Mila sighed, “That’s pretty romantic if you think about it. Crashing a wedding for the guy you like. He must have been pretty head over heels for you already if he was willing to do that.”

Alec hummed as he finished his meal. “What should I expect as a bridesman? We didn’t have bridesmaids or groomsman.”

“You’ll help me with the wedding.” Ash chirped, “Make sure I don’t stress out too much, help me set up some of the parties, we’ll have a bachelorette party, if I decide to make homemade favors you’ll help with that, help me with the rehearsal and dinner, and then on the actual wedding help me get ready and not panic.”

“You won’t have to do much honestly.” Mila sipped her wine, “As Maid of Honor I’m basically second in charge so I’ll take Ash’s ideas and concerns and delegate.”

“Weddings sound complicated.” Alec frowned. He knew there was a lot of preparation, but his and Lydia’s wedding happened in about a week from his proposal. How can it take months to do?

“I can’t wait for yours.” Ash laughed, “Then you’ll see how it is.”

Petra hummed in thought, “Do you think he’ll elope or have an actual wedding?”

“If it was just Alec I’m pretty sure he’d elope.” Tara chuckled. “I can’t see you taking months to plan your wedding. Not only can I not picture you planning an elaborate wedding, but I feel like you’re the type of person who doesn’t need a long engagement. I see you as a ‘I’ve proposed now let’s just get married. I want to call you my husband’ kind of person.”

Alec couldn’t exactly argue with that. Taking months to plan a wedding sounded exhausting. He could be married to Magnus by then.

“However,” Tara continued, “We all know you’re going to eventually propose to Magnus and I can’t see him doing anything less than fabulous. What would be the middle ground you think?”

Petra tapped her lip, “Obviously Magnus would have a beautiful wedding, but I don’t think it would take too long for him to plan and set everything up. He’d be just as eager to marry Alec as Alec would be for him. A part of me thinks the two would elope the minute they’re engaged and then have a ceremony later with friends and family.” Her eyes shifted to Alec’s with a smirk, “You two are besotted with each other. A match made in heaven.”

Alec snorted, “I wouldn’t mind eloping as long as Maxie and Rafe are there, but I’m pretty sure Izzy, mom, and even Jace and Max would kill me if they didn’t attend. Let’s not even talk about Nonno and Nonna.”

The table laughed in slight horror at the thought. Petra wiped her eyes from laughing, “They would murder you or worse disown you. Silent treatment all around.”

“It’d be awful.” Alec shook his head, “I wouldn’t mind planning some of it as long as it didn’t take months to plan.”

“You two are adorable.” Tara grinned. “Have you thought about proposing?”

Alec looked down shyly, “Yes.” He could see and almost feel his friends vibrating with excitement, “But not yet. There’s some more things I need to work through before I’m ready.”

Petra patted his hand, “Take your time. There’s no rush just make sure we know the moment it happens because _we_ will stop talking to you if we have to find out through someone else.”

“Yes, yes.” Alec rolled his eyes. “I know.” They finished up soon after and paid the bill. Walking back out into the cool air the group made their way towards one of their favorite bowling alleys. It’d been months since their last trip and Tara was ready to destroy them. She was doing a pretty good job too as she bowled a spare on her first go. She cheered obnoxiously, high fiving anyone willing to give her one. Mila merely rolled her eyes as she went to take her turn. The two were bowling rivals having both been on teams in high school.

As the night wore on and one pitcher of beer turned to two, bowling became sloppier for most and better for some. While Mila and Tara were amazing in the beginning (both having achieved Turkeys), they were slowly getting worse. Ash on the other hand was creeping up in the rankings. Petra gave up at one point and was having fun attempting trick shots while Alec remained steady in third place. He may not have been the best at the game, but he wasn’t exactly awful at it. Not like the first time where they ended up with bumpers just so he could learn the ropes. It had been a little embarrassing, but he got over it.

By the time the alley was closing, Tara had won twice while Mila had won once. Mila promised to kick Tara’s ass next time to which the other woman laughed. After seeing his friends off either into a cab or onto the right train, Alec headed home ready for bed. Once he was at his stop, he called Magnus as he walked home. The conversation was quite mundane with Alec filling his boyfriend in on how lady’s night was. He was halfway home giving Magnus a detailed retelling of how Mila tried to distract Tara by stealing her ball mid-swing when he was suddenly grabbed and thrown into the side of a building. His phone and gift bag clattered to the ground while he tried to orient himself from the sudden movement. A punch to the stomach had him gasping for air when suddenly a gun was thrusted into his face. Looking past the barrel the Nephilim noted three men. One with the gun and the other two with knives.

The man with the gun barked, “Give me your money! Now!”

Alec wasn’t stupid. Although he felt pretty confident in being able to take these guys down, he didn’t particularly feel like that was the smart choice. It would drag out the encounter, Magnus would be even more freaked out than he was, and there was a chance he’d get hurt. So with his hands up, he slowly went for his wallet. He didn’t have much in it and the muggers would be sorely disappointed if they wanted more than ten dollars.

Once the wallet was out of his pocket, the man on the left darted forward to grab it while also shoving Alec into the wall. The shove stung, but the Nephilim wasn’t particularly worried about it. Unfortunately, the muggers weren’t satisfied with the measly amount of money in his wallet. Shoving the gun once more in his face, the first mugger snapped, “Where’s the rest of it?”

“I don-” Alec was cut off when the man pistol whipped him.

“Empty your pockets!” Of course he didn’t have anything worth while in his pockets. Some lint, three crayons, and a receipt from a week ago when he went to lunch with Izzy and Max. 

While Alec went through the seven pockets he had, the other muggers went through his wallet. They tossed his bank card, license, library card, and a few other ones he got from local places for discounts. It wasn’t until they came across a picture that one of the muggers tapped the man with the gun. “Oi, look at this.” The men scoffed.

The guy with the gun sneered at Alec letting his eyes slowly run over him. “He aint got nothing.” Alec was relieved. Maybe now they’d leave him alone. His hope was dashed when the man said, “But we can’t have a fag runnin’ around.” Then he lunged. More on his toes than when he had been talking to Magnus, he easily dodged out of the way and kneed the man in the stomach. Although Alec was a trained fighter and regularly taught his friends how to defend themselves, I’d been a while since he actually fought a group. No matter how small. Thus even though Alec ended up taking the muggers down leaving them in a moaning mess on the asphalt, he still was a bit bloody. 

Touching his cut lip, Alec bent down to retrieve his cracked phone. He cringed upon seeing not only the screen but also the number of times Magnus had called and texted him. Sending a quick ‘I’ll call you in a minute,’ he dialed 911. It didn’t take long for him to get police officers on the way. Dispatch wanted him to stay on the line, but before he could say that he really needed to call his boyfriend said boyfriend appeared through a portal.

“Alexander Gideon Lightwood, wha- Alec!” The man was in front of him in two strides. Taking in the bleeding cut on the Nephilim’s lip, the few scrapes on his face, the slowly forming bruise on his left cheek, and bloody knuckles, the Warlock’s eyes shifted to the still groaning men on the ground. Suddenly burning cat eyes glowed in the dark of the night.

Seeing that Magnus was about to unleash righteous Edomic fury, Alec shot his hand out while shifting the phone away from his mouth, “Magnus, the police are on their way. They’ll be here any minute.”

“That’s plenty of time for me to play with them.” The pleasant smile on the older man’s lips barely hid the glee of sending the men to Edom for his father to play with. Maybe they’d appease his father for a few decades so he’d leave him alone.

Although it would be incredibly hot to see his boyfriend unleash his powers on some homophobic assholes, he really didn’t want to explain what happened to the men Alec had just informed the police were still there and alive. “I know you’re mad,” He ignored the scoff his boyfriend made, “But how would we explain their sudden disappearance?”

“They ran off in fear.” Magnus sniffed.

“Right. That’s believable after I literally told the officers they won’t be moving for a little while.”

“They hurt you.” Magnus gritted out. “They deserve to be punished.”

Quiet for a moment, Alec sighed, “Fine,” What was the point in fighting, Magnus would do what he wanted and if the roles had been reversed Alec would be beating the shit out fo the guys, “Put the fear of the Angel,” He glared at Magnus for letting out a laugh, “Lilith, Satan, your father, whoever you want into them, but make sure they are alive and present when the officers come.” Then Alec frowned, “Didn’t you have an important meeting tonight like right now.”

Gently cupping Alec’s face in his hands, Magnus said, “You are far more important, my love. Now,” Conjuring ice wrapped in a towel, he handed it to Alec, “Ice your cheek, I have some men to straighten out.”

“They already are. Too much in my opinion.” Magnus let out a small laugh before turning. “Have fun.” Alec smiled, “By the way,” Magnus turned to look at him, “They didn’t like our relationship.”

“They didn’t?” Grinning down at them, Magnus said in a sugary sweet voice, “But we’re the cutest.” While the Warlock made sure they changed their tune about their beliefs and life choices, Alec slowly walked around to collect his cards and organize his wallet. He was quite upset the muggers tore his picture apart. He’d have to ask Izzy for another copy.

By the time the cops arrived the muggers were crying and nearly curled in the fetal position while Magnus fussed over Alec. The officers asked Alec what happened, then the muggers who admitted to everything, and finally Magnus since he was there. It took some time but eventually Magnus and Alec were free to go home. One officer was kind enough to drive them home since she didn’t want them walking in the dark. Especially after what had just happened. After waving good-bye and thanking her, the pair headed up to the apartment where Jafa, Ezra, Accalia, and Lyle were waiting.

“Holy shit!” Jafa yelled, immediately jumping up. “What happened?” He narrowed his eyes at Magnus.

The Warlock glared back as Alec replied, “I was mugged. Stop looking at Magnus like that. He would never hurt me.”

“Damn right. Now if you’ll excuse us, I need to give Alexander some TLC.” Arm wrapping around Alec’s waist so Magnus could steer him towards the bathroom.

“Your dick can’t fix everything.” Jafa rolled his eyes.

Shooting a dirty grin at the Seelie, Magnus replied, “That’s what you think.”

“By the Angel!” Alec groaned gingerly placing his face in his hands.

Taking Alec’s hands and bringing them away from his swollen bloody face, Magnus started for the bathroom, “Careful darling. Let’s clean you up.” Once inside the bathroom with the door shut and Alec sitting on the toilet, Magnus started cleaning him up. The younger man winced a few times, but said nothing as he let his boyfriend take care of him. He knew how worried Magnus had been and let the Warlock do whatever he needed to calm down. Once most of the dirt and blood was taken care of, Magnus started using magic to heal the cuts and decrease the bruising. “There.” Magnus nodded satisfied with his work.

“Better?” Alec asked no longer feeling like his face had a bounding pulse of its own.

Leaning forward Magnus replied, “Much.” Then kissed him on the lips.

“Good. Shower or bath?” He was tired, but needed to clean off not only the fight but also bowling. 

Magnus debated for a moment and then replied, “Shower.” All he wanted to do was curl up in bed and hold his boyfriend. With a nod, Alec got up and walked over to the shower to turn it on. While they waited for it to warm up, they stripped and once satisfied stepped under the spray. Magnus growled upon seeing a bruise on Alec’s side and let his magic flow over the area until it was barely there. Then he put a generous dollop of body wash into his hand and washed the day’s grime from Alec’s body. Again the younger man said nothing as he let Magnus pamper him. He moaned when his boyfriend washed his hair and swatted the man’s hand away when Magnus went to wash his own. 

After the shower the two men dressed for bed, said good-night to the Downworlders now watching a scary movie, and dropped into bed. Magnus pulled Alec into him once under the covers and nuzzled his hair. A moment later Magnus whispered, “I was scared.” The vulnerability in the Warlock’s voice had Alec tightening his arms around the Warlock’s torso. “There was a loud clatter, some shouting, and then nothing. I couldn’t reach you. I thought something ha- worse happened.”

Looking up, Alec removed one of his hands from around Magnus to stroke the man’s face, “I thought they’d take my wallet and be done. I was hoping that would be the case because I knew you were probably freaking out.” He sighed as he remembered the night, “But then they saw the picture of us and the boys and decided they needed to beat the gay out of me or something.” He rolled his eyes because really that’s not how it worked. Homophobes. Really? “Took a little longer than I initially planned to contact you.”

“It’s probably a good thing you handled the situation before I tracked you. I would have killed them.” Alec had no doubt that Magnus would have. “But you’re okay?”

“Much better after you healed me. It sucked that they decided to mug then attack me, but yes I’m okay.” Then Alec had a thought, “Don’t tell Jace though, he’ll make fun of me for getting hurt.”

“I’m sure he wouldn’t.” Magnus frowned. “He’d be concerned and probably try to baby you.”

“Maybe at first,” Alec conceded, “But once he knew I was fine, he’d give me shit for letting three mundanes draw blood.”

“To be fair Alexander, one had a gun and the other two a knife.”

“But they’re _mundanes_. We grew up fighting demons and Downworlders.” Alec pointed out.

Magnus didn’t look impressed, “That may be, but you don’t have any runes to give you that extra boost. When was the last time you actually fought someone outside of sparring?”

“Um,” Alec tried to think back, “Probably when I was travelling around. No, when I was working security.”

“So over a year. Your body may know what to do in a fight, that doesn’t mean you don’t get out of practice from the real thing. You did a magnificent job taking those men down, but we can’t expect you to not get hurt in the process. As much as it pains me to admit that.” Magnus’s ringless finger combed through his boyfriend’s hair detangling it whenever he ran into a snarl.

“I suppose, but you know Jace.” He laid his head back down listening to Magnus’s heart.

“Unfortunately.” Magnus let out a yawn finally letting sleep take over. The pair mumbled a good-night drifting off into a dream filled sleep.


	2. Day Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I had fun with it and made me want to go where they went. Have a great week and I'll see you next time for some big doings. Cheers, Angels!

The following morning had a blurry eyed Alec waiting sleepily for the coffee machine to gurgle out his cup of caffeine goodness. He needed a perk-me-up for the day if he was going to survive it. “Good morning, Darling.” Was mumbled into his ear as familiar warm arms encircled his waist. “Please tell me there’s enough for two.”

“Four. I’m going to need more than one and figured you did too.” Alec replied with his eyes mostly shut.

Magnus tightened his arms and buried his face in the younger man’s neck. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”

“Maybe last night. I don’t remember. You might have to tell me again.” He grinned upon hearing his boyfriend snort.

Pressing a kiss to Alec’s neck, the Warlock whispered, “How about I show you?” Alec let out a moan as Magnus sucked on his neck while letting his hands roam over the man’s body.

“Ma-Magnus. What fuck, What a-a-about R-r-raf-fe?” The poor boy was already subject to him and Magnus kissing/lightly making out on a regular basis, he didn’t need to scar the boy with this.

“Hmm?” Magnus moved to another spot on the exposed neck before replying, “He’ll be asleep for another half hour or so. We’ve got time.”

“Fuck.” Alec panted as his boyfriend’s hands started drifting south. “Not- not in the… Kitchen.”

“Alright.” Turning Alec around so he could finally kiss him on the mouth, he drifted his hands south before lifting him. Alec let out a startled yelp as he automatically wrapped his legs around Magnus’s waist. Leaving the coffee for later, the Warlock carried his Nephilim to the bedroom to show him just how much he loved him.

By the time they should start worrying about Rafe waking up, the pair were panting with a slight sheen of sweat over their bodies. “I can without a doubt tell someone to fuck off if they ever doubt your love for me.” Alec remarked, causing his boyfriend to laugh.

“I’ll just laugh because clearly if someone said that to me they’d be wrong on all accounts.” He looked over at his boyfriend while taking his hand. “How are you feeling today?”

“A little sore, but that might be because of you showing me how much you love me.” Alec’s eyes were shut but a smile graced his lips, “I don’t remember feeling sore or anything this morning.”

“Good. Are you still up for today?” Magnus wasn’t quite sure if he was.

Pulling Magnus to him, the younger man replied, “Yes. Rafe would be devastated if we suddenly told him we weren’t going. I’m maybe a little tired, but nothing I can’t handle. Are you up for today?”

Scoffing, Magnus replied, “Of course.” Then his voice softened, “I wasn’t the one mugged yesterday.”

“I was referring to your age, but you did use quite a bit of magic yesterday.”

Magnus looked at Alec in faux surprise, “Alexander Gideon Lightwood! You take that back!” Rolling over to straddle his boyfriend, he started tickling the man. “I am a youthful young man. You take that back!”

Unable to prevent himself from laughing, Alec failed at throwing his love off, “Magnus! Magnus, stop!”

“Take back what you said and I’ll consider it.” Magnus grinned not letting up.

“You’re g-g-g-going t-to wake M-M-M-Max-x-xie.” Tears were beginning to slide down his cheeks. This time not from depression or sadness, but because Magnus was an awful person. “Magnus!”

“You mean _you_ , dear heart. I’m not the one being loud.” 

“You. Are. Ch-cheatinnng!” The laughing only stopped when they heard soft pattering of feet right before the door to the bedroom was flung open. Magnus had just enough time to snap his fingers to dress himself and Alec in boxers before the boy barged in.

With the door open and hair as if a drunken bird had decided to build its nest, Rafe looked at his dad and Magnus. “What’s going on?”

Before Alec could say anything, Magnus replied dramatically, “Your father called me old.” Rafe looked at him with big eyes and mouth slightly ajar, “And now I’m tickling him until he apologises. I think I need your help. He’s stubborn and won’t take it back.”

“Okay!” Rafe laughed, running and launching himself onto the bed.

“Rafe don-No!” Alec cried as he was assaulted by his boyfriend and son. “Rafe! Magnus!” It lasted a few more minutes before Alec managed to gain an advantage. “Ha!” He flipped Magnus on his back and started attacking his sides. He managed to render the Warlock useless as the man laughed.

Alec didn’t expect betrayal from his oldest son. The boy cried, “No!” before jumping on his dad causing him to topple over. Alec just managed to not swear in front of Rafe as he wrapped his arms around the boy and in the tangle of blankets fell off the bed. For a moment the room went silent.

Magnus popped his head over the side and called, “Alexander? Rafael? Are you alright?”

Pushing the blankets aside, Rafe blinked up and said, “I’m okay.” He looked down to see his dad also blinking in surprise.

“I’m good.” Sitting up, Alec hugged his son closer, “Little too much enthusiasm there.” He kissed his son’s forehead, “Uncle Jace and Max and Aunt Izzy and Clary would be proud.” Rafe blinked at the compliment then started giggling happily. “Up you go.” Alec lifted Rafe up into Magnus’s waiting hands. Pushing up he leaned on the edge of the bed.

Holding Rafe in his lap, Magnus smiled at his boyfriend, “Welcome back darling, but it looks like you once again lost. We are kings of the mountain or in this case bed.”

“Only because you cheat.” Alec huffed.

“All’s fair in love and _war_.” Magnus purred. His eyes then drifted to the crib, “Your youngest son truly can sleep through anything.” Rafe and Alec both turned their heads to look at the crib where a now waking Maxie was stretching his arms and making gurgling noises. “I sometimes wish I was like that.”

“Does make for having rowdy guests easier.” Looking up at his eldest Alec smiled, “Have you been to the bathroom yet?” Rafe shook his head and he leaned into Magnus, “Why don’t you go while Magnus gets Maxie and I’ll start breakfast?”

“Waffles?” The boy asked excitedly. “With bananas?”

“Sure buddy. Now get so I can start making them.” The older Nephilim chuckled as his son scrambled off the bed and out the door. “Do you want to make breakfast or me?” He didn’t care either way.

“I’ll grab Maxie.” Magnus leaned forward and kissed Alec softly on the lips. Making a noise of agreement he pecked his boyfriend’s lips one more time before standing. Quickly grabbing a shirt, Alec made his way to the kitchen where he washed his hands and started breakfast. By the time Magnus waltzed in with Maxie, Alec was nearly ready while Rafe finished setting the table. “What a wonderful sight.” Magnus grinned as he stepped up close to Alec and dropped a kiss on his cheek. “The waffles too.”

“Magnus.” Alec rolled his eyes as Rafe made an ‘ew’ noise. “Behave. Now sit.”

“Yes sir.” He turned throwing a wink in his boyfriend’s direction. He placed Maxie in his high chair before taking a seat himself. The family ate in silence for most of breakfast enjoying the meal. Nearly the end Alec told Rafe once he was done to go get ready. The moment his breakfast was eaten, Rafe hopped out of his chair and dashed to his room yelling how excited he was. “I believe your son is excited.”

“Is he?” Alec deadpanned, “I had no idea.” Getting up, he grabbed Rafe’s dirty dishes and waited for Magnus to pass his. While the Nephilim quickly put the dishes into the dishwasher, Magnus went to change Maxie into his clothes for the day. Which obviously meant he would look like a model ready for the baby runway. Walking into the bedroom, he glanced over at his son to see him in little suspenders. “You do realize we are going to the aquarium and **not** fashion day, right?”

“First off,” Magnus started while looking at Maxie and talking in a baby voice, “It’s Fashion Week, I know you know this. Secondly, one should always look good even if it is ‘only the aquarium.’ Now he’s a handsome man.”

“Right. Now out with you, I need to change.” He shook his head as he picked out clothes for the day.

Hugging the baby to him, Magnus raised a brow, “Because we didn’t just have a lovely round of very naked sex this morning.”

Alec glared at his boyfriend, “No talk about our sex life in front of Maxie. Also, I know if you stay it’ll take twice as long to get changed and we’re already running late.”

“Alright darling, only because I know you’re right and the last thing we need is for Rafe to walk in on us being less than decent. Come Maxie, let’s make sure everything is packed.” Blowing a kiss towards his boyfriend, Magnus walked out. Minutes later the family walked through a portal and stepped out near the Atlanta Aquarium. 

Once through the entry line, the small group walked in with Rafe jumping up and down. He couldn’t decide where he wanted to go first. There were almost too many options for the little boy to pick first. Magnus suggested the Cold Water Quest which had Rafe freaking out at all the animals swimming all around him. Halfway through the tank he started to cry; he was a little overwhelmed. Stepping off the moving sidewalk, Alec knelt down and hugged him while Magnus stayed close. He pointed out different fish, two whale sharks and a manta ray to Maxie as they waited for the little boy to calm down. It took some time but eventually the family continued through the first exhibit. 

Once they made it to the penguins, Rafe wanted to look at them through the tunnels. With a sigh because there was no way Alec was letting his five year old son crawl through them on his own, he squatted down and followed after his son. Magnus gleefully took pictures and helped Maxie wave at his brother as he popped up in one of the observation windows. To his disappointment Alec didn’t look up, but Magnus couldn’t help but try to hold back a laugh as the man crawled out. 

Next came the touch pool where Rafe was reminded to be gentle. Being held up, Rafe was able to stroke small sharks and stingrays. He giggled at the strange texture under his fingertips. He couldn’t get enough. After five minutes Alec told him they needed to move on if they wanted to see the rest of the aquarium. With a small pout he stroked a few more before he was put down and went to wash his hands. 

They next entered the Southern Company River Scout. They went through the exhibit a little faster than the first one, however Alec still found himself crawling through at least one crawl tunnel after his son. Just like the last time, Magnus loved every minute of it and took plenty of pictures. While Rafe seemed to like all the creatures in the exhibit nearly equally, Maxie had a strange fixation for the piranhas. He let out little hiccups when they started walking away. Alec was beginning to question his son’s taste in animals. First his favorite stuffed animal is a three headed hell hound, now he liked flesh eating fish. He was beginning to wonder if he should be concerned.

Once they finished with Southern Company River Scout, they broke for lunch where Rafe talked excitedly about everything they had seen. Lunch was anything but quiet and the boy had to be reminded to eat every so often. Next they decided to enjoy the Dolphin show. They sat far enough back that they weren’t in the splash zone (much to Rafe’s disappointment), but close enough where they could see everything easily. As the show started, Rafe began bouncing in his seat ready to see the dolphins. He could hardly contain his excitement and started hitting his dad once the dolphins were in the arena. At some point he found his way into Magnus lap completely enraptured by the tricks and performances. 

About a quarter of the way through Maxie started whining and squirming no longer content to sit and watch. Excusing himself, Alec told Rafe to enjoy the show while he walked with Maxie. The eldest Lightwood boy was disappointed his brother didn’t want to watch the show, but seemed satisfied that he could show him at a different time. While Rafe continued to watch the performance, Alec and Maxie left to walk around. By the time the show got out Magnus and Rafe tried to figure out where the pair could have gone. Unsurprisingly, they found them back at the piranhas with Maxie’s hands pressed up against the glass, making faces, and apparently growling at them. To Magnus’s amusement the fish didn’t seem to care at all.

By the end of the trip both men had their arms full of sleeping or nearly sleeping children. Originally they were going to go out to eat in the city, but with two kids asleep it might not be worth it. Rafe had grumbled about wanting to play in Centennial Park while simultaneously cuddling his dolphin plushie. Promising to come back another time, the group portaled back to the apartment and settled the boys down for a nap. The adults plopped on the couch debating whether or not it would be worth it for _them_ to nap.

Alec had nearly decided to just close his eyes and let fate take its course, when Magnus piped up. “Alexander?” Shifting blue eyes to brown the younger man waited for the question, “I’ve been meaning to ask, what’s it the gift bag?” 

For a moment Alec was confused. What gift bag? When one magically appeared his face shifted to one of recognition. “I got it from Ash last night. Open it. Card first.”

Magnus nodded and peered inside easily finding the card. Opening it, he smiled at the picture on the front. “Oh.” He smiled reading the words inside. “What did you say?”

“Yes. I’m honored that she’d ask me.” Alec lazily looked at his boyfriend who was pulling out the tumbler.

Turning the cup in his hand, Magnus cooed, “This is adorable and lovely. If you don’t use it I’m going to steal it.”

Alec snorted, “We’ll see. They asked me if I’d been to many weddings. I admitted to one.”

It took Magnus a minute unsure if Alec had been to any other weddings in his life. “You told them about yours?” Upon seeing his boyfriend nod, the Warlock started laughing, “They must have been shocked.”

“They wanted to know ‘who the lucky guy was.’ They nearly died laughing when I said it was a woman. How is Lydia doing?”

“Fine from what I’ve gathered. She’s brilliant at running the Institute and pops into meetings every so often. I don’t mind when she does, but when a Clave rep attends?” He rolled his eyes in annoyance. “They draw out the meeting. As much as I enjoy seeing our little leaders, I don’t want to be there longer than I have to.”

“I understand.” His words were beginning to slur as sleep tried to pull him under.

With a chuckle, Magnus seductively started to crawl over to his boyfriend until he was right above him, “Are you falling asleep on me, Alexander?”

“Yes.” Wrapping his arms around Magnus, Alec pulled the Warlock on top of him. “Nap time.”

“How can I say no to such a request?” Settling down with his head against Alec’s chest, the pair dozed. They woke an hour or so later to Rafe bouncing on Magnus’s back asking if they could go see Nonna and Nonno. With a yawn, Alec agreed they could visit as long as it wasn’t busy. The little Nephilim cheered as he ran to get his stuffie to show his great grandparents. Kissing a sleepy Magnus on the nose, Alec went to take his eldest son downstairs while Magnus waited for Maxie to get up. It wasn’t much longer before the boy was awake, but it allowed for a few extra minutes of nap time.


	3. Testing

As January shifted to February Alec found himself busier than ever. With Valentine’s Day just around the corner a few of the companies were booking last minute shoots for their lines, while most others were getting ready for St. Patrick’s Day. Why a saint’s holiday was so commercialized Alec would never know. All it meant for him was a lot of green and **not** telling Magnus about some of the underwear jobs. It was quite embarrassing. He was pretty sure Gwen had been keeping his boyfriend updated though.

With a packed modeling schedule, the young man also had to balance his home life. Twice a year Rafe’s school had Parent Teacher conferences and the boy’s was coming up. He almost turned down a job because of it. However, he was promised he would be out early enough to attend. He agreed, but made sure _everyone_ knew that if the shoot started to run over he would leave. Modeling wasn’t important enough for him to miss his son’s conference.

Then for whatever reason, Rafe started acting up. He was much more rowdy and difficult with tantrums daily. No one could figure out what had triggered it. Nothing terrible had happened and when asked about school he seemed to love it. It just felt like one day Rafe decided he didn’t want to listen to Alec and never stopped. When the older Nephilim talked to his therapist about it during one of their sessions (he was beginning to feel like a shit father) she talked him through it. Having a child of her own, she told him that sometimes her daughter liked to test her limits to see what she could get away with. She had to be firm with her while also reminding the girl that she loved her. Being a parent was complicated. Alec felt a little better after the session, even if he did feel like his nerves were still a bit frayed.

By the time Alec needed to be at the conference he was a little frazzled. Although the shoot had gone well and he actually walked out on time, Rafe had been a nightmare all day. It started the moment he woke up and apparently hadn’t ended. Alec had just enough time to make breakfast before he needed to head towards the studio. The little boy took one look at the eggs, fruit, and sausage before taking the plate in hand and throwing it across the kitchen. The loud noise startled Maxie which caused the baby to start crying. While trying to settle the little warlock, Alec attempted to be firm and send Rafe to his room for a time out which ended with Rafe screaming bloody murder, throwing himself on the floor, and thrashing about. Alec prayed the Piro’s couldn’t hear them.

By the time Rafe was in his room still crying but at least on his bed, Maxie was hiccuping as he settled down. Alec looked around the kitchen and sighed at the sight. The only one happy in all this was Luci and that was because she got a free meal out of it. He watched as the dog happily picked the last of the sausage from Rafe’s plate. It was going to be a long day.

With barely enough time to change his shirt, he couldn’t exactly go to work with Maxie’s snot and tears on him, Alec kissed Maxie good-bye, peaked in to see Rafe had cried himself to sleep, whisper a good-bye to him, pat Luci on the head, and thanked Ash for watching the boys for the day. The second ‘thank you’ was spoken, he was out the door and all but ran to the train station. He wasn’t two seconds into the studio when Ash texted him that Rafe was up and not happy. The texts never stopped. Alec was tempted to forego the meeting and just go home, but Ash reassured him that she’d dealt with worse. He was going to owe her a month’s worth of pies at this point.

Finally stumbling into the school building, Alec walked to Rafe’s classroom. As he waited for his turn to talk with the teacher, he wandered the classroom. Everytime he found Rafe’s name, he smiled at the picture or work he had completed. After some time he felt someone walk up to him, but didn’t take his eyes off the picture he was looking at.

“Rafe is quite talented.” Mr. Clement complimented as the pair looked at the piece of paper. It was a picture he had drawn for what he did over Winter Break. In it was him, Maxie, Luci, Alec, Magnus, Jace, Izzy, Clary, Simon, and Jafa playing in the snow. Big smiles on everyone’s faces even Luci’s. 

Alec nodded, “He does love drawing.” He finally turned to his son’s teacher. “Good evening.” He stuck out his hand.

“Good evening, Mr. Lightwood. Please sit.” The young teacher smiled while pointing to the small chairs the children sat at. “Sorry the chairs are short. Hazard of teaching little ones.”

“It’s fine,” Alec shrugged, “I end up on the floor more often than not.”

Mr. Clement let out a laugh, “The joys of parenthood and being a kindergarten teacher. Do you have anything you want to talk to me about or would you like me to start?”

Alec thought for a moment before saying, “You can start.” He knew he had questions but at the moment his head was mush from the stressful day he had.

“Okay,” The other man smiled, “Rafe is doing well. He’s keeping up with the course work and getting along with the other students. He’s especially taken with Carter and Jasmine, but also interacts with everyone else. At the beginning of the year, as we talked previously, I was a little concerned that Rafe might be a little behind due to his time before you adopted him. We talked about maybe having him repeat so he could catch up. However, he’s progressing well and although a little behind in some areas he’s quite developed in others. His phonic skills are one of the best and he’s already reading at a first to second grade level.”

Alec nodded, “We do read a lot at home. Some nights we read to him other’s he’ll read to us.”

“That’s wonderful!” Mr. Clement smiled, “I hope he never loses that drive. The only thing that concerns me a bit is his habit of switching languages mid sentence. He’s getting better from speaking primarily in Spanish to starting in English, but he does have a habit of switching languages.”

“Oh,” Alec scratched the back of his neck, “We can work on that. At home we are trilingual currently. With Rafe doing well in his English we’ve started introducing him to Italian since his great grandparents are. He’s picking that up easier due to Spanish and Italian being closely related, but we’ll work on staying in a single language.”

“It’s wonderful you’re teaching him multiple languages, but the school does require he speaks only in English. Well, at least during lessons. He usually stays in English, but when he gets excited or doesn’t know a word he’ll switch.” Alec nodded, that sounded about right. Even at home Alec picked up on that and will teach him the English word for whatever he was trying to say. “Aside from that, I’ve been having him help other students with their phonics. It helps both the student learning and Rafe and he seems to like it.”

“Not surprised, he likes teaching his brother whatever he can.” Mr. Clement nodded happily. Alec thought he was the perfect kindergarten teacher because it felt like nothing could wipe that smile off his face. He was glad this man was teaching his son. 

“The only other thing he’s a little behind in is math. He does well counting, but he needs visuals to be able to add numbers together. It’s not uncommon and we have a few other students like that, but I just wanted to make you aware. It’s nothing to hold him back currently, but you may want to work with him a little more so he doesn’t fall too far behind as he progresses through the grades.”

“Thank you. We’ll work on that.” Alec nodded.

“Other than that Rafe is a pleasure to have in class. He usually comes in here with a big smile and ready to learn and play with others. He’s really come out of his shell since the start of the year. I thought he might be one of those students that liked to be alone or have only a few friends and shy away from others, but after he got to know everyone you can see him floating between the different groups. He can be quite social when he wants to be.” Mr. Clement tapped his finger for a second before calmly asking, “I do have a question for you Mr. Lightwood if it’s not overstepping.”

“Okay?” Alec frowned.

“One moment.” The younger man stood up to grab a few pieces of paper before sitting down. “Colors and pictures can tell a lot about what is going on inside a person’s head. Psychologists use art therapy to help those deal with their emotions and any traumas they may have experienced.” He placed down a few pictures that were done quite well for a five year old, but the more you looked the more they made you frown. The colors were dark and some of the people in them were frowning or sad. “These were done a few months ago and I thought about calling a meeting just to check in. I know we’ve talked a bit about Rafe’s past and I know you are an active parent in his life so I thought it might be better to see how things went before giving you a call.

“November seemed to be a month where Rafe was struggling with something.” He pulled out three pictures. “His coloring was much darker than usual and him, you or whom I assume is you, and another man seem sad.” He pointed to three figures with frowns on their faces, “I wasn’t sure if November just happened to be a sad month for him for whatever reason. A death of a parent or something from his past.”

“No ah,” Now Alec kind of felt like even more shit. He knew November had been hard for Rafe, but having it in picture form had Alec’s guilt building, “I wasn’t having a good month. I am… I have depression and for whatever reason November was a bad month.”

“Does Rafe know?” There was no judgement in his voice that made Alec feel a little better.

With a nod, Alec replied, “As well as a five year old can understand. He calls it my sad period or will ask me if I’m sad if I’m experiencing a minor bout of it.”

A realization lit up the other man’s eyes, “Oh. He did say you were sad when I asked him about it.”

“Yeah,” Alec scratched his head again, “He doesn’t quite understand what depression means, but he does know I get sad or unhappy. My boyfriend, the other man in the picture,” He pointed to the man with a glittery shirt, “Was also having a bad month. The previous year he experienced something traumatic and it was causing him to not sleep. We sort of fed off each other. We tried not to let Rafe or Maxie be around it, but I guess you can only hide so much.” And didn’t he know that? He grew up watching and hearing his parents fight. “November was a bad month for us. Magnus would spend some time away partially because we were fighting and partially so the boys didn’t have to be around him, but that didn’t make the situation better. Rafe missed him whenever he stayed away for more than a night.”

“I understand.” No relationship was perfect.

“He didn’t act out or anything did he?” Alec hoped someone would have told him if he had.

Mr. Clement shook his head, “No. On occasion he was quieter or didn’t feel like playing, but overall he was his usual self. After November he seemed a lot more like himself.”

“December was a better month.” Him and Magnus finally had the talk that had been months in the making. Things definitely settled down after that. “How is he doing now?” 

“Most days, fine. Once or twice he’s been outspoken, but that isn’t anything abnormal in children.” Noting the frown on Alec’s face, Mr. Clement asked, “Is everything okay at home?”

“He’s been a bit more… incorrigible lately. Throwing tantrums, throwing things he normally doesn’t, refusing to go to bed, things like that. Normally it isn’t a big deal. I understand he’s only five and they do those things, but lately it’s been every day.”

“Has anything changed? Working more hours? Gotten into a fight with a family member or your boyfriend? Spending more time with your other son for whatever reason?” Mr. Clemenets cocked his head in thought.

“Not that I can think of. I have worked a little more, but that was because of the holidays coming up.” Alec replied.

“That could be it. Maybe it has to do with his past whether it be something he remembers or not.” The man offered. “Have you asked him?”

Alec sighed, “He just yells no and either storms off or pouts”

“I can talk to him if you’d like. Just check in to see how he's doing.” The offer left if up for Alec to choose. This man was good.

“If you don’t mind.” There was a tired way to his words like any help would be appreciated.

“Of course not, Mr. Lightwood. Is there anything else you’d like to talk about?”

Quiet for a moment, Alec finally said, “Not currently.”

“If you do please don’t hesitate to email me. Rafe has been a pleasure to teach so far. You’re doing a great job with him. I know he’s being a little tough right now, but kids do that. Take it from me.” He let out a laugh.

He probably did know better than anyone. The man taught five year olds for a living for 180 days out of the year. Alec would take his word for it. Standing up, Alec offered his hand once more, “Thank you for your time.”

“Thank you. I hope everything with Rafe settles down soon.” Mr. Clement walked him to the door. “Have a great evening, Mr. Lightwood.”

“You too.” With a nod, Alec walked out of the room towards the exit. By the time he got home, he was ready to pass out on the couch or preferably his bed. Before even thinking about going to his apartment he dropped by the bakery to pick up Ash’s well deserved reward.

“Ah Polpetto, how are you?” Nonna greeted once it was his turn in line. Her smile dimmed a little upon seeing the tired look on his face, “What is wrong?”

“It’s been a long day. Hello, Nonna.” He leaned over to kiss her cheek. “You can’t hear screaming down here, can you?”

With a frown, Nonna replied, “No. Is everything alright?”

“Rafe has been testing my patience lately. Throwing tantrums. May I have one of your pies please. It’s for Ash who I am currently contesting to be a saint.” He rubbed a hand over his eyes.

“Of course.” As she started getting a pie ready, she said, “Everything will be fine. Children like to test parents. Our boy did all the time until he was about twenty. His tantrums now prepare you for when he’s a teenager. I thought Nonno and I were going to murder our boy. He was a firecracker.”

“With you two as parents I’m not surprised your son is spirited.” He chuckled when the older woman glared at him as she finished wrapping the pie. “Thank you again. If Rafe allows it, we’ll come visit tomorrow. I know it’s been a little while since we all visited.”

“You’ve been busy. I understand. Now get to your boys and tell them I love them. You stay out of trouble.” She passed the pie over to him before kissing his cheek. 

Kissing her back, Alec replied, “I’ll try. Have a good evening, Nonna.” She patted his cheek before letting him go. He slipped in the back to say hi to Nonno then headed upstairs to the apartment. A small amount of dread filled him at having to face the chaos. Currently he didn’t hear anything through the door, but he knew that meant nothing. With a deep breath Alec opened his apartment to find the TV playing an animated movie. 

Ash’s head popped up and looked over at him with a smile. “Welcome back.” She greeted seconds before Rafe looked up and over the back of the couch. “How was your day?”

“Alright.” He nodded and slowly made his way over. “Hello, Ash. Hi Rafe.” His youngest son was apparently already in bed. “How was your day?”

The pair looked at each other before Rafe slowly melted from view. It was pretty telling how Rafe thought his day went. Ash on the other hand smiled and said, “It was a little rough in the beginning, but we settled down. Rafe finished all of his homework, helped me with dinner, and is all ready for bed. I let him stay up until you got home.”

“That’s fine. How much longer in the movie?” He shifted the pie in his hand feeling far more awkward than he should.

“Half hour? Maybe a little less.”

Alec nodded, “Okay. Rafe, you can stay up until the movie’s over. I’m going to put the pie on the counter and I’ll join you in a minute.” He attempted to ruffle Rafe’s hair but succeeded in only catching a few strands before the boy hid under the covers. Trying not to sigh too loudly, Alec gave a tight smile to Ash before heading to the kitchen. Placing the pie on the counter, he grabbed a cup of water. Heading towards his bedroom to change, his son barely looked at him as he passed. By the time he returned, Rafe was cuddling up to Ash but made sure to stretch as far as his little body could so his dad had to sit somewhere else or squish him. Alec could take a hint.

By the time the movie finished Rafe was on the verge of being asleep. Debating for a moment Alec thought about having Ash put his son to bed, but thought better of it. It was no longer her responsibility to get _his_ son in bed. With a final good-bye and thank you, Alec handed over the pie and saw her out. Ever grateful she gave him a hug before skipping out the door with a promise to keep him updated on her progress home. The mugging was still clear in his mind. After locking up he walked back to the couch where his sleeping son was nestled in the blankets he and Ash had used. Steeling his nerves, Alec bent down to pick the boy up. At first everything was fine. The boy nuzzled the older Nephilim’s chest and hummed. However, the moment he realized it was Alec holding him and not someone else he started yelling and flailing; repeating ‘No!’ Alec nearly got nailed in the face with a foot and fist.

The moment Rafe was placed on his bed, the boy scrambled under the covers still muttering ’no’ whenever Alec said something. Even when he said good-night, the boy yelled it. Not having the energy to fight that night, Alec left Rafe alone. The older man didn’t even look at the clock as he walked to the bathroom to do his nightly routine then headed to bed. He laid awake for hours staring at the wall. He only moved when Magnus slid into bed quietly thinking Alec had been asleep. Taking the hint that tonight might not be the best night to talk, Magnus pulled Alec into his arms and ran his fingers through the dark locks. It didn’t take long before the Warlock was fast asleep, but it was a few more hours before Alec followed.  
After that night Alec had been on the verge of yet another depressed period. He fought it. He put everything he learned to try and fight off his depression. His sugar intake was minimal, he exercised daily, kept a strict sleep schedule, went to an extra therapy session, did at least two chores a day (one if he worked), and made sure to interact with others. It worked for almost a week before the scales tipped. The day had been him getting ready for Rafe’s party that Izzy and Magnus were planning. He didn’t mind the excuse to keep busy; he’d been feeling jittery for the past two days. He was carrying a box up to the apartment when he heard some whispering. That wasn’t too odd. What was strange was the tone of the whispers. It definitely sounded as though two people were having a disagreement. He meant to turn around or at least announce his presence when he froze. A familiar little voice cried out, “He’s Not My Father!” Only a cold hearted person wouldn't feel like their heart had been shot and shattered into a million and five pieces.

Magnus’s voice was stern with a touch of anger as he scolded, “Rafael Lightwood! Do not say that! Alec loves you as his son.”

“But I’m not! He’s not my father!” Alec’s grip on the box tightened as numbness started seeping through him. That jittery feeling that had been simmering for the last two days started to intensify until he felt himself start to shake. Biting his lip, he quietly placed the box down and darted off. He couldn't listen anymore.

Flashing a weak smile that had more water to it than reassurance and an excuse that made no sense, Alec headed out the bakery door and down the street. He didn’t know where he was going. All he knew was that he needed to keep moving or he’d have a melt down. Everywhere he went was too busy and loud. The park had children running around with their parents or guardians chatting away. He didn’t want to go to a store because people were shopping and that would definitely make him feel boxed in. Nowhere seemed like a good place to stop and breathe. The world was too loud making his nerves feel even more like live wires.

Alec finally ended up at a cemetary he didn’t even know existed. It was quieter with far less people in it than anywhere else. As he power-walked to the farthest corner of it, he may have passed one or two people. They were in their own little world to care about a fast walking man that hadn’t even thought to bring a coat with him. By the time he found a small crop of trees he was shaking too much to stand any longer. He dropped to a squatting position and leaned his hands and head on the closest tree. As every negative emotion crashed over him he had a fleeting thought that he should probably call someone. It was gone before he could even think to check for his phone. He wasn’t sure how long he was there with his eyes closed, nails digging into the rough bark of the tree to keep him upright, and trying not to topple from the full body shaking he was experiencing. It felt like forever, it seemed like mere seconds before he registered the familiar sound of a portal opening and closing. A part of Alec wanted to shy away from the soothing contact his boyfriend was probably about to offer, but another stronger part of him wanted, not needed his Warlock. He was lost among the riptide of his emotions and needed some guidance out of what he was experiencing. He needed help.

“Shhh. It’s okay. I’m here. It’s okay.” Magnus’s warm voice broke through the wet freezing chaos in Alec’s head while soothing fingers ran up and down his spine. “It’s okay, Alexander. I’m here. You’re safe.” They spent God knows how long working through Alec’s break down before the man finally slumped against his boyfriend. Kissing Alec’s temple, Magnus asked gently, “You okay?”

“I’m stable. At least for now.” Alec mumbled in a tired tone.

Rubbing his hand up and down the Nephilim’s arm, the Warlock said, “We can work with that. What happened?” When all Alec did was look down and play with one of Magnus’s rings, the older man’s heart sunk. “You heard us. Me and Rafe.” The silence was confirmation enough. “You know he didn’t mean it, right? He loves you.” Again the Warlock was met with silence. “Alexander, I know Rafe is being hard right now and he said that awful thing, but… as someone who was an orphan, sometimes we lash out at those who love us because we’re scared they will decide they actually don’t want us. It’s a poor coping mechanism I know, but it’s better to force someone to stop on our terms than be blindsided. I don’t know what triggered it. I tried talking to him and honestly it could have been nothing, but right now he’s testing you in one of the worst possible ways. I’m sorry, my love.”

“I know.” Alec whispered. A part of him figured it out a week or two into the whole thing started. He’d read enough in books and online blogs that many foster and adopted kids go through a period or five where they test how much hurt it takes before the foster or adoptive family gives up and sends them away. The knowledge didn’t make it any easier. “It hurts.” Hugging Alec closer, the pair stayed in the embrace for a little while longer before portaling back to the apartment. While Alec went to take a nap with Maxie and an invitation to Rafe if he wanted to join, Magnus and the rest of the family continued to set up for the birthday party Magnus was quite of tempted to cancel.


	4. Balloons and Rage

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alec has it bit rough this chapter. He's still in a more depressed state of mind from last chapter and something happens where we get to see protective!Alec emerge. Thus BE WARNED there is talk of torture later in the chapter. Nothing gorey or in detail. 
> 
> Stay safe and may the virus pass quickly. See you next chapter. Cheers, Angels!

The day of Rafe’s birthday party was both a great time and an exceptionally long day. Two days after his actual birthday (apparently the cupcakes Alec and Nonna had made went over well at school) the apartment was ready for eight kids and a few of Alec’s friends and family. He had to admit, like Maxie’s party his family did not disappoint when it came to decorating. Every surface of the apartment had something to do with Rafe’s ocean theme. Whether it be pirate ships, sea creatures, or sea plants, nothing went undecorated. Even Luci was sporting a red and white shirt Rafe wrestled on her with a scarf tied around her waist. After a few scoldings from the boy, the dog gave up and went along for the ride. 

By two the first of the guests started showing up. Unsurprisingly, Madzie was the first to pop in with Cat dressed in her blue scrubs and a bandana in her hair. The little warlock had on a pirate dress topped with a bandana that matched her mom’s and an eyepatch that hung around her neck. The moment she was through the portal, she darted towards Rafe. With a little too much momentum the pair’s hug ended up with them giggling on the floor. A moment later they were both up and she skipped over to say hello to Alec and Magnus. 

After they greeted her and told her how nice her dress was, she wandered off to play with Rafe. Watching the two interact, Cat snickered, “I see Luci got in on the party.” The dog had rolled over so the kids could pet her belly.

“Rafe made sure she didn’t feel left out.” Alec smiled tiredly. He could already feel the effects of what the day before had caused; a disturbed sleep schedule and lots of over thinking.

Cat looked over at him and asked kindly, “You okay? I can stay if you want.”

Shaking his head, the Nephilim replied, “It’s fine. Petra will be here and so will my family and most of the Downworlders. Thank you, though.”

“If you need me, just let me know.” Turning back to watching the kids Cat was able to stay for an hour before she had to head off to work.

In that time, Ionna showed up dressed in shiny rainbow mermaid leggings that flared at the bottom to look like fins and a pink top that matched. Throughout her long hair were seashell clips and some ribbons. After a quick hello to the adults, the trio was off to play a game that Alec was pretty sure was pirates. He should probably tell them to be careful on the couch. Then again it’s managed to survive his friends.

Not long after Ionna’s arrival Carter, Jasmine, Jackson, and Morgan entered with just as much enthusiasm as the other two. The exception with them was their hello to Alec and the other adults. It was a quick hello before running off to join in the fun. By three thirty the apartment was filled with giggling and shouting from whatever game the kids had decided on. 

While the kids ran around the adults grouped together to talk and catch up. Nonno and Nonna wandered in and out with too many sweets to be healthy, but alas it was a birthday party and Alec looked the other way. Unlike Maxie’s party where everyone ended up either wet and/or covered in food, Rafe’s party was a little cleaner. Most of the kids did end up with frosting smeared across their faces, but very little actually made it onto their clothes. Alec was okay with that. 

At some point Maxie ended up a sea captain of a navy ship with Luci as his first mate and Ionna as his prisoner. The game was to try and rescue the mermaid from his evil clutches. Ash and Mila ended up joining just to give Maxie a little bit of a chance against his brother and friends. The pair were smart enough to enable game play to last for quite some time, but dumb enough that the kids had fun thwarting their plans to keep the mermaid captured. In the end, Maxie, Luci, Mila, and Ash were tied up in streamers and Ionna was saved to return to sea and help the pirates in their adventures.

By the time cake was offered, the group of children were more than ready to stuff their faces. Similar to Maxie’s party an off-key singing of Happy Birthday was sung ending with Rafe blowing out all his candles. The look of pure joy on his face was worth all the struggle and tension he and Alec had been experiencing. For one day there was apparently a truce making it feel like another day in the Lightwood household. 

Not long later, the party gathered around so Rafe could open his presents. It was nice, but Alec had no idea where he was going to put all the new toys. Maybe they should think about moving somewhere bigger. Or give some of Maxie’s old toys away. The ones that he doesn’t play with anymore. Alec was sure he could find someone to give infant to one year old toys too. 

All in all, Rafe had a nice haul of new toys, some clothes, and books to entertain him for the foreseeable future. After opening the presents, the kids ran off again to play, adding some of the new toys to the mix for greater fun. Magnus ended up pulling Alec to the kitchen and hugging him. The Warlock could see how tired his boyfriend was and wanted to give him a few minutes reprieve from everything. The poor man nearly fell asleep leaning against the older man. All too soon, Magnus kissed Alec’s head and told him it was time to join the party. With a nod, the pair wandered back into the living room to find Carter and Jasmine tied up with streamers (Alec wasn't sure where the kids were finding them) while Madzie and Rafe tried to question them as to where the gold was. Apparently they were determined not to give up the treasure.

A little after six the party started to dissipate. Slowly the kids started heading home with their parents, some nodding off on the way out. By the time everyone who was going to leave left, the adults were lounging on the couches and chairs while Maxie, Rafe, and Madzie watched a movie. It was a relatively calm night after a boisterous day.

It was supposed to be an ordinary day. Rafe was still giving him trouble, Maxie was getting more mischievous by the hour, Alec was still battling his depression, Magnus had a busy day with clients and a few meetings, and Jafa was going to watch over the boys while Alec finished a day of shooting. It was normal. It was what Alec was used to. That was definitely not what happened.

Normally Alec was an excellent model. Not because he took pictures that made more money than he was comfortable thinking about, but because he never was late, didn’t flake, and always finished a shoot even after an attack. However, his perfect streak broke the moment he glanced at his phone to find a voicemail from Jafa. Knowing he had a few minutes before he was needed, Alec walked off to the side to listen.

_Alex, get home. We were… Fuck… we were… Fuck Alex I’m sorry. I did… I did everything I could. Shit, they’ve been taken. Rafe and Maxie, some Warlocks took them. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I tri- I- Fuck._

Alec was frozen as Jafa rambled. His kids had been taken. Rafael and Max had been taken and he didn’t know by who or where they went. One of his worst nightmares was coming true.

Someone was going to tell him where his sons were.

Doing his best not to actually crush his phone, the Nephilim turned on his heels and started towards the dressing room. He didn’t even pause as he quickly changed into his clothes, grabbed his bag, and headed for the door. With a courtesy he only offered because the photographer was someone he had built a mutual respect for, he stopped near him. “I’m going home.”

Mid-shot, the photographer stopped and turned towards him, “You better have a good reason.”

“My kids are in trouble.” Without so much as an apology for cutting out early, he left. He didn’t even hear what the man had to say before the door was closing behind him. He was all but running as he navigated through the halls of the building and into the streets of New York. He was almost to the train station when his phone rang.

The moment the call connected the other person called, “Alexander.” The younger man didn’t even pause in his steps to get home. “Where are you?”

Although most of him was focused solely on getting back to his home and finding his kids, the rest of him knew enough to respond during a crisis to get as much info as possible. “Almost to the train station.”

“Once there, go to the bathroom. I’m making you a portal.” Magnus’s voice was soothing with a hint of authority. The perfect mixture to calm Alec a little to think a bit more clearly. The second he was in the bathroom he informed Magnus he was ready. “Making it now. Don’t think, let the portal take you here.” Alec didn’t even question as he stepped through.

He did start wondering what Magnus was up to the moment he stepped through and appeared just outside Magnus’s door. He started to panic. If they thought he was sitting out in finding his boys his friends and boyfriend were seriously mistaken. The moment Magnus stepped out of his loft, he could see the pure rage in Alec’s eyes. The kind of rage that turned the man’s beautiful blues almost white hot. He’d never seen them pointed at him and it was kind of terrifying.

Shutting the door behind him, he stepped in front of his boyfriend, “Alexander, dar-”

“Why am I here? If you think you’re ke-” 

Magnus placed his hands on Alec’s shoulders to try and calm him. “Alexander, as much as I’d love for you to stay out of this I know you won’t. What I’m about to tell you, I need you to remain mostly calm. Okay?”

“What aren’t you telling me, Magnus?” His voice deepened as he flexed his fingers. He was feeling jittery the longer he didn’t know anything about his sons.

Rubbing Alec’s shoulders in a soothing motion, Magnus replied, “We have one of the Warlocks.” Tightening his grip as Alec jerked towards the door, Magnus kept the other man in place. “Wait. Alexander, just wait. We need her alive. She hasn’t told us anything. Most of your Downworld friends and I have been interrogating her since we found her and she’s said nothing. No matter what you can’t kill her.”

Alec was panting with his eyes fixed on the door behind his boyfriend. Just beyond, barely a hundred feet was someone who knew where Rafe and Maxie were. With gritted teeth, he replied, “I won’t.” Seeing the look on the Nephilim’s face, Magnus nodded and led the man in.

The second Alec and Magnus were through the door the pair saw all of the Downworlders except for Solomon, Jafa, Marcelio, Ezra, Accalia, and Alastair. Without so much as a hello, Alec continued following Magnus until they came to a partially opened guest room. “My siblings aren’t here?” Alec asked, pausing just outside the door. All of his answers were just steps away.

“No. Not yet. It would be considered their problem once we called them especially if they… if they found out about Rafe. We’re trying to keep this as quiet as possible. Or at least until we know where they are.” Magnus whispered. “Ready?”

“I need… I need a minute.” Alec turned and walked towards the bedroom. He was in there longer than Magnus would have thought, but not as long as someone who just lost both his kids probably would have taken. By the time he returned his face was blank and the righteous fury that had burned before turned colder than ice. For a moment Magnus wasn’t sure Alec would keep his word _**not**_ to attack the woman.

“Ready?” Once Alec nodded, Magnus pushed the door open and inside was a scene to behold. The female Warlock was tied to a chair that she would never be able to break out of, Jafa’s knife twirled as he spun it with eyes that never left her, Marcielo was leaning against a wall acting as if nothing bothered him, and Ezra was flexing his hands as his eyes shifted between his natural color and toxic green. 

Jafa looked over and started, “Nice of you to-” Before seeing Alec behind Magnus. “Alex…” He trailed off. “I- I tried… I’m so-”

“What happened?” Cold blue eyes stared at the sneering Warlock that shifted as if to get comfortable in her seat. Like she wasn’t in a room, no loft full of beings ready to kill her.

Gulping, Jafa replied, “After I picked Rafe up from school we went to the park. Unless it’s too cold or snowing we tend to do that. Everything was fine until she and three other assholes showed up and started attacking… I’m good, but even I’m… I managed to wound her and another, but the other two slipped through and grabbed them. I tried-” He cut himself off before being able to finish with, “I tried to save them but… they portaled. I was able to incapacitate her, but the other got away. I’m sorry, Alex. I’m-” 

“What do you want with my sons?” By now he was standing in front of the female Warlock like a high ranking military personnel. His head held high, eyes fixed on her, no visible anger on his face except for the absolute zero rage in his eyes, feet shoulder width apart, and hands behind his back. When she didn’t reply he asked, “Where are my sons?” Still she remained quiet and smug. He tried a few more times but with each question she didn’t reply or carelessly shrugged. 

He slowly made a circle around her. It was lazy in pace and from an outsider’s point of view looked unrushed as if he had all the time in the world. He took one more turn around the room before stopping once more before her. “I’ll ask you one more time: Where are my sons and why do you need them?”

A bemused smile graced her lips as she snarked, “Why would I tell you?”

“Oh she does speak. I thought her a mute for a second.” Marcielo quipped, still not looking up from his phone. “Excellent news, I was beginning to think this was a waste of my time.”

Alec didn’t react to the Warlock and instead replied, “Because we are asking nicely. Should you continue to refuse to answer it shall get far worse.”

“And if I enact the _blessed_ Accords?” She smiled with pointed teeth.

Alec cocked his head, “You are in a room and loft full of beings that do not adhere to those. They are the Underground Downworlders. Do you think they care about the Accords should you invoke them?”

“They?” She let her eyes jump from one Downworlder to the next before looking at the door, “Oh I know they are the scum of the Shadow World. Will they listen to me if I call on the Accords? Hell no. However,” A smile that was much more predatory than she should sport considering she was being interrogated, “ _You_ are a Shadowhunter. I can feel the Angel coursing through your veins the moment you stepped into this building. Then there's him,” Her eyes looked to Magnus, “The **High Warlock of Brooklyn**. Gotta follow the rules, right?”

Alec let out a huff of a laugh while a wry smile spread over his lips. It was a little disconcerting considering the Nephilim was required to adhere to his precious laws, but she gave nothing away. Straightening up, Alec looked to his friends, “Marcielo. Jafa. Ezra. Please leave and shut the door behind you.” 

The three Downworlders looked at each other before nodding. “If you need us, don’t hesitate to call upon us. We are the Downworlder Scum afterall.” Marcielo said as he followed the other two out.

“And then there were two.” She looked unimpressed, “Two that are required to follow the rules.”

“Here’s the thing,” Alec started his slow circles again knowing Magnus wouldn’t interrupt unless absolutely necessary. The man was actually leaning against the wall picking at his nail polish deciding what color would look good to go rescue his darling boys, “Magnus may be the High Warlock and to a degree required to tell us Nephilim about you, but he’s also someone who takes care of his own. He much prefers not having to deal with the Nephilim. My son Maxie is a Warlock. Magnus will do _anything_ to protect Warlocks especially those who are children and can’t fend for themselves. He’s also someone who will do anything to protect a child, no matter their species. Rafe may not be a Warlock, but Magnus will do anything to protect him. 

“On the less professional side, Magnus will do anything to protect those he loves. And let me tell you, he loves Maxie and Rafe dearly. He will do **anything** to protect them. I know he will. He would never willingly let anything happen to them. So if you think you invoking the Accords will deter him from finding our boys, you are mortally mistaken.” He didn’t stop at the first circle, he continued as he looked up in thought. “Of course if you invoke the Accords, that will inform the New York Institute that you helped kidnap a Warlock and Mundane child. Big no’s in their book especially when they hear the last name. _Lightwood_.” He paused and made her look at him. Although he could see the defiance in her eyes, he knew it was a shoddy mask that tried to hide her fear, “My family will not **stop** until they find them. You’ve had to have heard of my siblings. Izzy. Jace. Two highly regarded Shadowhunters in not only New York but the Shadow World. With them comes Clary. I’m sure you know all about Clary. She’s quite famous in her own right. Creating new runes and all. Then of course there’s my mother, Maryse.” He started the circle again, satisfied to see her facade falling apart, “Ex-Circle member. Cold hearted bitch. Dearly loves her children. She’ll be one hell of an opponent to face off against. I feel pity for anyone who faces her ire.

“With them comes a whole slew of Downworlders and I don’t mean the ones you’ve met. You’ll have Simon, the resident Daylighter. He fought Jonathan you know. Then there’s Luke. He may no longer be the Alpha of the New York Pack, but he’s a formidable opponent. I mean he’s a trained Shadowhunter, has been a Werewolf for a few decades, _and_ has fought an Alpha and lived. I’d be afraid if I were you. I’m sure Maia would have no problem helping me if not Magnus, find my boys. At this point you nearly have all of the New York Downworlders against you. That’s not including a second High Warlock searching for your… companions. Since Maxie is a resident of New Jersey and you kidnapped him and Rafe in that state, I would also make contact with the High Warlock of New Jersey, Lorenzo Rey, to help in the search and rescue of my boys. I could be wrong, but New Jersey Downworlders will probably help search for them since, as stated before, one of them is a baby Warlock.” He finally stopped in front of the woman with a fully put together appearance. “Then there’s me.”

He gave her his relaxed political smile that was anything but friendly. The one that had the other wondering what was actually going on in the man’s head, but would never know unless he felt like telling you. “If none of the above reasons make you reconsider your stance on staying silent, I promise you _I_ will change your mind. You’re going to tell me where my sons are because,” She scoffed for a mere second before her eyes widened in terror, “Although I have the blood of angels running through my veins, **I am not** a Shadowhunter.” After years of struggling with his new identity, he was finally owning it. Being stripped apparently had some wonderful, if not terrifying perks, “ **I do not** have to honor your invocation of the Accords ergo,” Suddenly he was holding a stele in his hand as if it were a glorious feather to behold, “I will not hesitate to burn every rune I know onto your body until you tell me where my sons are.”


	5. Sons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who has commented. They mean a lot and I do love reading them and seeing how you're reacting to the chapters. As always I hope you enjoy this chapter. Have a great week and see you next time. Cheers!

_”I will not hesitate to burn every rune I know onto your body until you tell me where my sons are.”_

The words hung in the air. For a moment the room was silent and no one moved. Magnus had paused in his inspection of his nails to look at Alec. The female Warlock looked at the Nephilim before her like he was joking. Only when her eyes met Magnus’s and his perfect eyebrow quirked up did she realize that perhaps he wasn’t. Alec on the other hand was standing perfectly still in a relaxed stance, the stele still held up waiting for her decision.

Sliding her eyes away from chocolate brown irises, she let out a humorless laugh, “You’re joking. You wouldn’t do that.” Then her eyes snapped to Magnus’s, “You wouldn’t let him do that.”

Alec cocked his head ever so slightly and replied, “On the contrary, I would.”

Looking to Alec before moving, Magnus walked closer to the bound Warlock. “You must realize my dear Warlock, that Alexander here has quite the history of doing whatever is necessary to protect those he loves. Going so far as to find his Parabatai once that he nearly died.” He leaned forward and dropped his voice, “He protected the Downworld and his friend and thus didn’t fight getting his Runes removed. Alexander will do anything to get his sons back and I will not get in his way.”

“You’re supposed to be protecting me!” She cried suddenly scared that maybe no one would stop the insane Shadowhunter from doing as he promised.

Standing up straight, Magnus shrugged, “You broke the law. You not only kidnapped someone, you kidnapped a child of our kind and a Mundane. You kidnapped two children I hold very dear. I’m not feeling particularly generous right now. Make your choice. Tell Alexander where his sons are _or_ I go grab some tea and see how my guests are fairing. I’ve been a poor host and haven’t offered them anything to drink yet.” A pleasant smile spread across his lips, “Your answer.”

Collecting the last of her defiance and praying the Warlock before her was bluffing, she snarled, “I will never tell.”

With a shrug, Magnus turned, “Fine. Would you like tea, my love?”

Looking over at Magnus, Alec shook his head, “No, not right now.” With a nod, the older man started for the door while the Nephilim stepped forward, “Last chance.” When defiant eyes looked at him, Alec nodded and leaned over. The tip of the stele had barely touched her skin before she started thrashing and crying out for him to stop.

“Alright! Alright. I’ll Talk. I’ll talk.” The words came with her sobs. This man before her truly wasn’t bluffing. “Please don’t. Please. I’ll tell you.”

Straightening up immediately with his hands clasped behind him, Alec asked, “Where are my sons?”

“They’re…” Although Alec could be patient, he wasn’t allowing this meeting to go on longer than it needed to be. Whether she was stalling or truly so terrified that her thought process was delayed, he didn’t care. maUpon seeing the glint of the stele again, she cried, “Loew’s Theater.” Magnus frowned while Alec continued to look at her with a blank face and hard eyes. “Th-th-they’re t-t-tak-k-king th-th-them t-t-to the L-Loew’s-s-s S-s-street-t-t Theatre.”

“The Loew’s 46th?” Magnus inquired. The female Warlock nodded, eyes still fixated on the stele that Alec tapped on his palm. “If she’s telling the truth, it’s not far from here.”

“Can you confirm what she is saying?” Alec asked eyes still not straying from the woman in front of him. 

With a nod, Magnus stepped forward and surrounded the woman with his magic, “Are the boys at Loew’s 46th Street Theater?”

“Yes.” She hiccuped.

“Why do you want them?” 

Biting her lips, the female Warlock replied, “To sacrifice.” She whimpered upon hearing Alec growel.

“I see. How many of you are there?”

“Five, including myself, and a dozen sh-sh-shadow hounds.” Tears were still slipping down her cheeks but she was a little more put together.

Magnus tapped his finger to his chin, “Anything else we should know about?”

“They’re powerful a-a-and they’ll start the ritual at sundown.” 

Without another word, Magnus turned to walk out of the room. He knew Alec would follow and the moment the door shut they faced each other. With a low voice, he said, “She was telling the truth or at least that was the truth when she was not captured. I doubt they’ll change where they’ll be performing the ceremony. If anything we should be prepared for more Warlocks and shadow hounds between us and the boys.”

“What are we waiting for? It’ll be sundown soon.” Alec started but an arm wrapped around his waist stopped him. “ **Magnus.** ”

“We need to gather all those coming with us. Do you want your family to come or leave the Shadowhunters out of this? Either is fine.” Magnus wasn’t pushing either way.

All Alec could think of was one thing, “What’s the fastest way to get to them?” 

“Most of us are here, maybe call Maia and her pack and we could head out. While we’re there we could call in the Shadowhunters as backup.” He pulled his boyfriend in to lean his head against Alec’s, “We’re going to get them back.”

Gripping the front of Magnus shirt, Alec’s eyes still cold, “Let’s go. I’ll call Jace on the way.” Magnus leaned up and gave a quick kiss before letting his boyfriend go. With determined steps, Alec led the way to the living room. “We’re going to the Leow’s 46th Street Theater.”

“That’s where they have Rafe and Maxie?” Jafa asked as he shoved himself off the back of the couch. Seeing Alec nodded, Jafa rolled his shoulders, “What are we waiting for, let's go.”

“Wait.” Magnus said turning to face Alec, “Because I know it’s useless to tell you to stay behind,” He waved his hand dressing his boyfriend in a simple leather chest plate, leather bracers, a quiver that would never empty, a smooth bow Magnus was once gifted by a grateful Seelie, and a black cowl with an attached face mask that hid the lower half of the man’s face. Alec looked at him unamused as he pointed to the mask. “If the Shadowhunters come, I don’t need them arresting you because of their ridiculous de-runing laws. No complaining. You have your dagger?”

“I have both. Who else is coming?” Alec asked, checking the bow and a few of his arrows.

“Everyone at your apartment, except Accalia, will be joining us. She’ll stay behind to keep watch over your apartment and the Piro’s.” Jafa replied while everyone checked their weapons and gear. “I just need to send the Bat Signal.”

Alec looked over everyone in the living room. The last person his eyes fell on was his boyfriend. “Ready?” 

“Let’s go save our boys.” With a twist of his wrist, Magnus opened a portal to the theater he once haunted.

Alec stepped through first, whipping out his phone as he did. Within seconds his ex-Parabatai picked up. “Hey, can I-”

“Rafe and Maxie were kidnapped. They’re at the address Magnus just sent you. About four Warlocks, possibly more and a dozen shadow hounds.” As he stared at the theater before him, Alec’s blood began to boil.

There wasn’t even a second pause before Jace replied, “We’re on our way.”

Without so much as a goodbye, Alec hung up and shoved the phone in his pocket. With a simple but mostly safe plan in place, the group silently stalked inside the building. While three stayed in the foyer to take care of the shadow hounds patrolling the area, the rest spread out. Alec and Cass went into the balcony to stage their ranged attack. For a few seconds Alec froze upon seeing his sons on the theater’s stage. They huddled together in a pentagram like circle while two Warlocks prepared for the ceremony. His sons’ cries broke him out of his trance causing him to ready his bow in seconds.

The shadow hounds proved to be pests as they phased in and out or disappeared into the shadows only to attack from another angle. Alec launched arrows after arrows at the Warlocks with most of them being beaten away by magic. Too focused on trying to stop the ritual from happening Alec didn’t realize three hounds were stalking towards him until it was almost too late. Feeling the chill to his left and his back, he turned to see that he was trapped. Muttering a curse, he knocked four arrows and let them fly. While one of them actually stuck into one of the hounds causing it to let out a high pitched whine that angered its brethren even more, the other three either missed the hounds completely or went right through them. As the hounds snarled and snapped at him they continued their progression forward. 

Shouldering his bow, he pulled out his daggers from his boots and readied himself. He felt himself tense as he watched the black, shadowy creature crouch before springing forward. As he thought maybe he was about to be taken out by these shadow beasts and really hoping his daggers would kill them, a reddish blur streaked across his field of vision right at the shadow hounds. It took his brain a minute to register what he was seeing. Before him was the familiar form of his dog as she tore one of the hounds apart and snapped at the other. Brimstone greeted his nose as the dog before him snarled at the other two hounds that attempted to circle her. 

Slipping his bow back into his hand, he aimed at the one Luci wasn’t trying to kill. Although it fased every time Alec shot it, he managed to keep it busy enough that Luci managed to kill its partner before focusing on it. Within a minute the shadow hound was dissolving into nothing like its siblings. 

Keeping his bow still knocked, Alec didn’t take his eyes off the dog in front of him. “Luci?” The uncertainty in his voice didn’t seem to bother her at all. The dog finally turned to face her owner giving Alec quite a terrifying view. Her normally bright eyes were glowing with a demonic fire that seemed to blaze out of her eyes. Every time she panted smoke bellowed out as the scent of brimstone corrupted the air around her. Parts of her like her chest, spine, and ribs seemed to be glowing with a fire within her. Part of Alec was screaming at him for him to kill her, that she was a danger. Yet the moment her fiery eyes, that if you looked deeper into them had shapes flickering in them, saw him she instantly changed into the pup he knew. Her back end shook back and forth ready to topple her any minute, while her tongue lulled out happily. She trotted up to him like she did every time he returned home. Expecting him to pet her head and tell her how good she was.

Alec stared at her, unsure what to do. Luci was clearly not a regular dog as they thought she was. How they missed that she was clearly… demonic, he’ll never know. After all this was done he was going to have words with all of his Downworlder friends including his boyfriend. At the moment however, he had bigger issues to deal with. Which he was reminded of when Rafe let out a shriek. Turning, he saw one of the Warlocks nick his finger with a dagger before doing the same thing to Maxie. Although the little Shadowhunter tried to keep the man away from his little brother, he received a slap for his efforts and his brother was cut. 

Completely forgetting that maybe trusting a possibly demonic dog wasn’t a good idea, Alec gritted out, “Luci. With me.” The dog automatically stood by his side ready for further commands. Firing off a dozen more shots, Alec turned and darted off. Out of the balcony, into the hall, down a set of stairs, and he disappeared through the backstage doors. Along the way the pair killed or at least scared the shadow hounds out of the path to the boys. Once in the wings, Alec crept nearly silently for a perfect shot. His heart shattered every time the boys cried out for him. 

As he watched patiently and breathed slowly, he tried to let go of all the anger that was raging inside him. For a few seconds he needed to be quiet. Time slowly ticked by as he watched the male Warlock chant from an ancient tome while his companion prepared something Alec couldn’t see. Feeling confident in his shot, the archer let out a breath while releasing the arrow. Milliseconds after the release, he was knocking another and lunging forward. “Luci, protect Rafe and Maxie.” He commanded. The dog gave a sharp bark as she veered off towards the circle and her boys.

While Luci stepped into the pentagram and made sure she was between the boys and any danger, Alec dodged out of the way from a magic fireball. He didn’t let it slow him. He used the momentum from his dive to spring back up and take a sharp left around the table. After one particularly close call with a magic ball, the Nephilim launched himself at the Warlock trying to kill him. The pair crashed to the ground grappling while slowly getting covered in blood. The gasping from the Warlock Alec had previously shot barely registering in anyone’s minds. While he gasped and tried to figure out how to pull a magically protected arrow from his throat, Alec received a few well aimed punches to the face before gaining the upper hand. Rolling them over, Alec used one of his forearms as leverage as he snapped the Warlocks arms. The Warlock cried out leaving him open for a well placed right hook, knocking him out. 

In pain, but still high on adrenaline and the need to protect his sons, Alec stood up and oriented himself. His boys weren’t too far away, Luci was protecting them, the last of the Warlocks were putting up a good fight but it wouldn’t be long before they were dealt with, the number of shadow hounds were down drastically, and the Shadowhunters had finally arrived. With a swift kick, Alec incapacitated the gasping Warlock and hurried to his son. “Rafe! Maxie!” He scooped up his sons and held them close, trusting Luci to continue to watch over them. The boys sobbed into his shoulders as he whispered softly to them that they were safe. His eyes scanned the fighting before him trying to find an escape route.

The moment his eyes met Magnus’s relief flooded into the cat eyes that Alec’s adored. With a flick of the older man’s wrist a portal swirled to life. With a shallow nod, the older Nephilim whispered for his boys to hold on before taking off towards the portal. 

A few steps from the portal, Alec ordered, “Luci, protect Magnus.” Then he was gone from yells and the electric smell of magic. The soothing scent of sandalwood with a hint of alcohol greeted the trio. It did little to calm the boys that were terrified and shaking. Rafe sobbed until he started to dry heave, while his brother cried himself into a restless hiccuping sleep. Placing Maxie on Magnus’s bed, Alec rubbed Rafe's back as the little Nephilim continued to cry into his dad’s shoulder. All through the sobbing and exhausting himself to a half sleep, Rafe’s father kept talking to him about how he was safe and that he was no longer with the bad people. 

After the sobbing had ceased and Rafe stared unseeingly into the distance, Alec pulled the face mask down and carried the boy to the bedroom. Standing in the middle of the room for a few moments the older Nephilim decided what to do. Sleep was probably in order, but he and the boys were a mess. “Rafe, I’m going to put you down for a second.” The moment the sentence left his mouth, the little Nephilim started crying all over again. “Okay. Shh. I won’t. I won’t put you down.” As Rafe clung to him like a terrified baby koala, Alec grabbed two shirts he knew Magnus wouldn’t mind the boys wearing and a set of clothes for himself. Once they were acquired, he placed them in the bathroom and started to fill the tub. 

As the tub filled, Alec went to gather his youngest he knew wouldn’t be asleep much long. He whispered softly for the boy to wake before picking him up. Once the tub was filled, he undressed the boys, somehow managed to undress himself while Rafe and Maxie clung to him, and settled in the warm water. His cellphone was kept within reach just in case.

By the time Magnus walked into the en-suite bathroom, the Lightwood men had been washed, the water replaced, and now they were relaxing and trying to settle from the day’s event. Upon seeing Magnus both boys cried out for him. While Rafe sat up straight (almost crushing an organ or two that Alec had grown quite attached to) crying out for Magnus, Alec flung his arm out to prevent his youngest son from toppling over the mouth of the tub in his attempt to see the Older Warlock. His cries of ‘Ma. Ma’ mixing with Rafe’s sobs of ‘Magnus.’

“My darlings.” Magnus’s voice was low and calm as he squatted next to the bath. Although he was the picture of put together or close too, Alec could see the shine to his eyes. “You are safe.” Not caring in the slightest if he got wet (his clothes were already ruined), he pulled the boys closer and kissed their heads. He held them for a few more moments before leaning over to kiss Alec. “How are you, my love?”

Leaning his forehead against boyfriends, Alec replied, “Better. How is everyone else?”

“Good. A few minor injuries, but nothing more. Your family has brought the Warlocks into custody.” Magnus informed fingers running through Rafe’s hair.

Alec nodded, “And the Warlock here?” He pulled Rafe into him when the little boy froze in fear. Words of comfort were whispered to try and calm the boy once more.

“She will be delivered to the Institute soon. The Shadowhunters want to retrieve her.” At first Alec wasn’t thrilled, but then thought better of it. Jace and Izzy most likely wanted an excuse to come over and make sure their nephews were okay. “I’ll go prepare her for transport. See you soon, Darlings.” Leaning over, he gave Rafe and Maxie kisses before standing up and leaving.

The Lightwoods spent a few more minutes in the bath then Alec wrapped them in fluffy towels. Although Rafe pouted about not clinging to his dad, he let Alec dry him off and dress him before repeating the process with Maxie. Once both boys were dressed in oversize t-shirts, they waited impatiently for Alec to change into soft lounge pants that were slightly too short for his long legs and the burgundy shirt he had borrowed for Halloween. Alec really needed to start leaving some of his clothes at the loft again.

Finished getting dressed, he turned to his sons, “Alright boys, come here.” He easily picked them up and headed out to the living room where he knew their friends were waiting anxiously to see them.

Almost immediately they were swarmed by friends and family. While Maxie relished the attention, as he always did, Rafe buried his head further into Alec’s neck. It took a few seconds but eventually everyone backed away to give the frightened boy some space. No longer being crowded, Rafe peaked out from his hiding place and threw his hands out to Magnus. Eventually the boys were passed from person to person. 

It was an hour before Jace, Izzy, and Clary were satisfied in their knowledge that their nephews were safe that they were willing to finally bring the female Warlock back to the Institute. Gathering the boys on the couch and away from where the woman would be walking, Magnus threw up a protection spell that hid the boys from her view. Seconds later the woman was escorted out of the room she was held in by the three Shadowhunters, Jafa, and Cass. 

The moment she was several feet away from the boys, Luci started growling at her and once more flared into her more demonic form. Startled, the female Warlock jumped sideways away from the dog nearly crashing into Clary. “Satan below! What the hell is that?” Her eyes wide with fear. The three Shadowhunters did well in masking their surprise and alarm. Alec had a feeling he would be having a talk with them once everything settled.

“Luci. Sit.” The dog did as she was commanded and sat by Magnus’s feet. Her growling never ceased as her fiery eyes stared into the other Warlock’s soul possibly contemplating how delicious it would be. 

With a flick of his wrist, Magnus created a portal in the middle of the living room. “Off with you. I’m tired of your presence ruining my chi.”

“We'll see you soon.” Jace nodded while tightening his grip on the woman’s upper arm. “Let’s go.” He tugged her forward and disappeared through the portal.

“Take care of my nephews.” Izzy blew a kiss before following Jace. Clary was the last to leave. She offered a smile and a wave before stepping through and closing the portal behind her.

Later that night as the boys slept fitfully in Magnus’s bed and Magnus and Alec settled in for the night, Alec couldn’t help but asked in the dark, “How did no one realize months ago that Luci was part hellhound?”

Veiled by the darkness in the room Magnus blanched. “Aaaah… I don’t, I don’t know?”


	6. Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I debated on how I wanted Magnus to react to Alec's blatant threat of torture. Would he be upset with his boyfriend because Warlocks definitely aren't meant to bare runes? Or would he be okay with it because his boys were in danger and he would do anything to get them back just like Alec? So, in the end I went with what I wrote. It felt more true to Magnus. I hope you enjoy it. Now hopefully things will calm down for our poor boys. At least for a while. I hope you like this chapter and I'll see you next time! Cheers, Angels!

The next day Alec found himself with either a constant shadow or attachment as he went about his day in the loft. Unsurprisingly, neither boy wanted to be farther than a few feet from either parental figure. If they were near Alec, they damn well made sure they were attached to Magnus. Which made everything much more interesting and tedious. 

Breakfast had Alec juggling his youngest son while trying not to trip over Rafe. The young Nephilim only strayed farther than half an arms reach if his father asked him to either grab something or set the table. Even then the boy looked over at him every few seconds to make sure he didn’t disappear. It would have been cute if it wasn’t for the fact this behavior was all due to a traumatic experience.

Shifting Maxie’s weight around Alec couldn’t help think back to when he was a single father of an infant child trying to figure out the whole taking care of a child thing. Which in retrospect was a little easier because at the time Maxie didn’t squirm or weigh as much as a 25lb dumbbell. But he managed. Honestly, it wasn’t the first time Alec had to do it and it probably wouldn’t be the last time. 

As the meal was on the verge of being ready, Alec looked down at his oldest son. **“Rafe?”** The little boy looked up with wide eyes and a fearful expression, **“Do you mind going to wake Magnus up and letting him know breakfast is ready?”** Seeing the boy look unsure, he called Luci to them, **“Luci will be with you and I’ll be right here. I’m not leaving the kitchen okay?”** Although his expression was unsure if he should leave his dad’s side, Rafe grabbed Luci and let her lead him to the bedroom. Every few steps he looked back to make sure his father didn’t suddenly vanish. Alec’s heart broke every time Rafe did that.

A moment or two later, Alec heard soft footsteps and the tapping of nails on the floor. He smiled while pouring the second cup of tea and hummed as Magnus leaned over to kiss his cheek. “‘Morning, Darling. Hello, my Little Blueberry.” Magnus stayed pressed up against Alec for a few more seconds still trying to wake his tired mind. “Smells wonderful.” With a second kiss to Alec’s cheek, the Warlock stepped away, grabbed his cup, and went to sit down. The meal was quiet with small conversations between the adults here and there. Trying to clean up afterwards was an ordeal. Rafe started sobbing the second Alec suggested he go sit on the couch and watch something. Not even five seconds later Maxie was in tears. The two meltdowns had both adults comforting the boys; breakfast easily forgotten. By the time Alec got around to cleaning up the meal, the boys were snuggled against Magnus watching _Jake and the Neverland Pirates_ which if you had told Magnus a year earlier he would be watching, he would have laughed and turned you into a toad. 

Upon Alec’s return to the couch, Maxie was valiantly trying to stay awake. His head bobbed up and down as his eyes tried to stay open but every few seconds slid closed. He had a jolt of awakeness when his father shifted the group around a bit to lean against Magnus, but within seconds was fighting sleep again. It wasn’t long before he lost the fight and drifted off into dreamland.

Rafe on the other hand looked to be sleeping with his eyes open. The oldest Nephilim kept looking over at him and he stared glazed eyed at the screen. Every so often he made a little whimpering noise, but aside from that he was quiet and barely moved. Although Alec knew he was in shock, it still concerned him. He was thinking of talking to _his_ therapist and seeing if there was someone she could recommend. 

And so the next few days revolved around trying to settle the kids. They eventually moved back to the apartment above the bakery. Being back in their home helped settle the boys further so they didn’t have meltdowns at everything whether it was a mild inconvenience or a reminder of what had happened. Magnus had informed his clients and most of the Downworld he was responsible for that for the time being he was only taking urgent appointments or mishaps. A few times he had to step away to deal with the Warlocks that had kidnapped the boys, but for the most part he was home reassuring the boys they were safe.

Alec on the other hand had to talk with his agent and apologized profusely for cancelling some of his jobs. He didn’t go into detail (he was hardly going to tell a Mundane that _Warlocks_ kidnapped his sons), but he did give her the jist of what had happened. His boys had been kidnapped, but were now home safe. He wouldn’t be taking jobs for a little while because the experience had obviously traumatized them. She was very understanding and so was the photographer from the shoot he left early from. Alec had to admit, the modeling world was treating him quite nicely. He’d heard horror stories that had him wondering if he should start figuring out a different career. Magnus had teased him about being a househusband and began describing some… outfits the Nephilim could wear. Alec told him he could sleep on the couch. The bedroom had filled with laughter as the younger man walked out shaking his head.

A week after the kidnapping, the Lightwood apartment was filled with the usual suspects. The sketchy Downworlders were on the couches competing in yet another Super Smash Brothers tournament. They managed to convince Rafe to sit and play with them and for a little while the boy seemed to forget what had happened to him. Alec’s Shadowhunter family milled about talking while they competed for Maxie’s attention. 

As Alec made green tea, still not trusting his anxiety and his depression with caffeine, Magnus lounged at the table with Maryse, who was holding Maxie, Jace, and Izzy. Seeing that Alec had already poured the hot water into his cast iron teapot, he held out his arms for the younger man. Bringing the pot over and letting tea steep, he took a seat on Magnus’s lap. Jace made a face before scowling had his sister for hitting him on the arm.

“Rude.” The blond hissed. 

Izzy rolled her eyes, “Please like we haven’t seen you and Clary do worse.” She raised her brow with a smirk when Jace shrugged. 

The group talked lightly on what was happening from day to day. How demons were being relatively quiet at the moment giving the Institute time to actually catch up on sleep and much needed paperwork. The Council was actually managing to get things done when the Clave wasn’t sending useless envoys to watch them and play Devil’s Advocate. With Magnus taking time away from some of the more minor aspects of being the High Warlock, Cat had taken to attending the meetings was a nice addition. She kept her head when some of the other leaders started arguing or straight up ignored the entire argument until they were ready to actually get work done. Magnus loved hearing how Cat put others in their place by merely saying that they were being childish and thus did not warrant an ounce of her attention. The bitching afterwards always made Magnus’s night.

Eventually their voices dropped so Rafe wouldn’t hear them. They broached the topic of the kidnapping and what was going on. The Shadowhunters were frustrated because the Clave, as usual, was taking their time and not treating the case with much urgency. It was getting to the point the Downworlders wanted to advocate for the Council to decide on a rightful punishment. Alec scowled. He wasn’t surprised, but it still frustrated him. His boys had been kidnapped and nearly murdered. The Warlocks needed to be punished!

Magnus leaned forward as he stroked Alec’s back, “Do they know that Alexander was there?” It had always worried him that _one_ of the other Shadowhunters had figured out who the masked archer was. Realistically he didn’t think they did or cared since Alec hadn’t been arrested, but it was still a worry. Having to fight for Alec’s freedom wasn’t something he wanted to put his boyfriend or the boys through. It would most likely get messy and possibly end up with the mundane Lightwoods disappearing to a remote island Magnus would purchase so they could live happily ever after until the Clave got off their backs.

Jace leaned back and propped his ankle on his knee. “No. If anything, they think the archer was a Fey which almost caused a huge blowout with the Seelies.”

Alec sat up straight, “Why did they think I was possibly Fey?” Even with his mastery in archery, there was no way he moved with the grace of a Fey.

“Your bow for one. Anyone with eyes could tell it was a Seelie crafted weapon. Second, your deadly grace with the weapon had some Shadowhunters thinking you could only be someone… supernaturally gifted.” Jace tilted his head as he looked at his brother, “You are terrifying with your weapon of choice.”

“Of course I am,” Alec frowned, “Everyone who’s trained with their weapon long enough would be. Take Izzy,” He pointed at his sister who preened under the attention, “I may know how to use a whip, but she makes it look like an art form.”

“Just saying. The bow isn’t a weapon Shadowhunters choose often and you proved last week just how terrifying they actually can be. I mean, I watched a guy nearly pee himself when one of your arrows flew right passed his head and killed a Shadow hound. For a second I think he thought you were aiming for him.” The blond shrugged. “Your accuracy is nearly unparalleled. You must be magically inclined to make some of the shots you did.”

This time it was Alec’s turn to roll his eyes, “I’ve spent probably close to a hundred thousand hours practicing with a bow. If I can’t make trick shots, I shouldn’t be called a master archer.”

“No objection from me. But it’s probably a good thing to some degree they didn’t think of you. You’re one of the few Nephilim that chose it as your primary that’s still alive which narrows down who could have been there that night. If anyone had thought about the weapon choice, how deadly accurate you were, and calculated that _Magnus_ , who orchestrated the attack, was there, it wouldn’t be that big of a jump to figure out the lone ranger was probably you.”

“But,” Alec frowned, “I’ve basically disappeared. Quite literally did for a while. I could be just a friend of Magnus’s.”

“Please,” Izzy shook her head, “As much as Magnus liked to party, we all know he only has a small group of people he actually trusts.”

“I thought I was Lothario?” Magnus piped in.

While Alec snorted and Maryse’s cheeks dusted red, Izzy replied, “That image started to change when you started dating Alec and then with the whole Sebastian debacle, it became clear you actually liked very few. We never said anything, but…” Izzy shrugged.

Magnus frowned, “Huh. Interesting. I didn’t think the Clave cared too much.”

“You’re the High Warlock of Brooklyn and one of the most powerful Warlocks in the world. They do have an obsession with keeping your file as much up to date as possible.” Izzy dipped a cookie into her tea and took a bite.

“Do they know Alexander is back then?” The Warlock could feel his pulse quicken.

“As far as we know, no.” Maryse replied, handing Maxie over to her daughter. “There’s suspicion that he’s found you,” Her eyes went to her eldest son, “But so far there hasn't been anything that indicated that he has. Our behaviors are slightly different than when you first disappeared. However, it looks like the Clave thinks we’ve… given up or accepted that you’re gone.”

“Which works in our favor.” Jace smirked. “Especially right now.”

“But what’s happening to the Seelies? You said the Clave suspected me of being one of them and aren’t they not supposed to have weapons?” Alec remembered Magnus saying that back when they talked about what had happened.

“It took a bit of linguistic artistry, but I informed Lydia that it definitely wasn’t a Seelie warrior raining arrows down from the balcony. She didn’t try very hard to get me to reveal who it really was.” Magnus said. “It took more effort to get your Seelie friends out of trouble than it did to convince her you weren’t a Fey.”

“That’s… good?” Alec frowned.

“It is because you and the boys are safe. No whisking you away to a far off island that I may have acquired just in case.” the Warlock smiled.

Narrowing his eyes, Alec glared, “You didn’t.”

Magnus paused dramatically before laughing, “No. I didn’t buy an island just so you couldn’t be arrested. I’m thinking of buying it because I am bored and want a place where I could roam naked without being arrested for public indecency.”

“Magnus.” Alec groaned while Izzy giggled, Jace gagged, and Maryse shook her head exasperated.

“I do have a question though for you, Darling.” Alec waited for his boyfriend to ask. “Where the hell did you get a stele?” The Nephilim frowned, thrown by the question. “You pulled it out of nowhere.”

Blue eyes widened in understanding, “Oh.”

“When did Alec have a stele?” Jace looked around confused. “I don’t remember seeing him with one.”

“We _were_ fighting for our and the boys lives.” Maryse pointed out.

Jace’s brows were pulled together as he tried to think back on the fight. “Yeah, but I kept an eye on Alec. I always have an eye on him.” 

“I didn’t have one at the theater.” Alec said, suddenly looking embarrassed. “It was… It was at the loft… before.” Then he turned his attention to his boyfriend, “I got it when I took a moment in the bedroom.”

“But Alexander, you,” The older man hesitated. He knew it was getting easier to talk about, but Alec no longer being a Shadowhunter was still a looming, gloomy presence. “You don’t have a stele anymore.”

Biting his lip, Alec confessed, “I actually have several placed throughout the loft.”

“What?” The group cried out in confusion with a hint of surprise.

“I did it back when I was still a Shadowhunter. I had my main one, but if something happened to it or it wasn’t within reach while I was _in_ the loft, I wanted a spare one close by. I did the same thing in my room and the office back at the Institute.” He scratched the back on his neck awkwardly, “I kind of forgot about them until I went to calm down. I don’t think I’d ever been that scared or angry before and when I was in the bedroom I remembered that I had a stele taped inside one of the drawers I used. I was a little surprised it was still there.”

“How many are there?” _And how have I not found any of them?_

Alec looked up with a frown, “Probably about seven. I know at one point I had one in every room, the balcony, and the roof, but the number fluctuated the more I stayed over and then was called out.”

“How have I never found one!” He changed his furniture depending on his mood.

“Well, I figured you planned to stay where you were, location wise, but I know you like to change things around so I put them in places I knew probably wouldn't change. Your Ming vase has one taped inside it. Or at least it did last time I checked. There’s also one taped behind the refrigerator.” Then Alec frowned, “Or did I move that one to make it easier to access? I don’t remember. I know how much you like your tub so one’s taped to that.”

“I’ve definitely washed my tub since knowing you.” Magnus objected.

Raising a brow, the younger man said, “You’ve magicked it clean. When was the last time you actually scrubbed it?”

Sniffing, the Warlock defended, “I have magic.”

“Exactly why you’ve never found it.” Alec smirked.

Jace piped in before the couple could continue their weird flirting. Those watching them could see the heat beginning to rise in Magnus’s eyes. “Okay, so Alec has squirreled away multiple steles, we get it. What I want to know is _Why_ he had one in the first place? Why did you need it?”

Alec stared at Magnus for a few seconds. Micro expressions flitted across his face as Magnus responded in kind. Turning to look at his family, the Nephilim replied, “The Warlock Magnus and the Downworlders managed to capture, knew where my sons were so I was going to make her talk.”

“And how were you going to do that?” Maryse asked carefully. There was a small voice in the back of her head that told her she probably already knew the answer.

“I was going to use it to scare her into telling me where they were.” 

The vague answer didn’t satisfy his mother. She looked at him hard and asked again, “How?”

Sighing, Alec replied, “If she wasn’t going to tell me, I was going to draw every Rune I knew on her skin until she talked.”

“Alec!” Maryse cried out nearly toppling her chair as she stood. Both of his siblings looked at him in horror. “You wouldn’t.”

“I would have.” Alec didn’t back down as he crossed his arms. “I gave her ample tries to tell me where they were. I warned her what I planned to do if she didn’t talk. Magnus couldn’t use magic on her to make her tell because she had a protective charm on her that rebuffed his and any magic that’d force her to speak the talk. Trying to go through her memories would have taken too much time. So I gave her a choice: tell me where my boys were or be runed.”

“And what if she tried to invoke the Accords? What would you have done?” Her son had clearly not been thinking straight.

“She endangered a Warlock child and his brother. If I took my time calling upon Shadowhunters, well…” Magnus shrugged. By the time he called the Nephilim she would have been singing anyway.

“You would have let Alec,” Izzy waved her hand unsure how to put her brother’s actions into words, “Rune a fellow Warlock?”

“She and her colleagues kidnapped my boyfriend’s sons, of course I would have. I’m not what most people would call a nice person.” Magnus knew exactly who he was and was not ashamed of it.

“Good.” Izzy nodded in approval.

Maryse sent her daughter a disapproving look before saying, “But you are the High Warlock of Brooklyn. You’re supposed to look after the Warlocks in your care.”

“She knew the possible consequences of breaking the Law. Warlock society looks down upon any harm coming to a child Warlock. What she and the other Warlock did and planned to do… let’s just say whatever I did would have been considered acceptable punishment. Besides I look after me and mine. She was nearly sent to my father, but she talked so I let her sit here and wait to be arrested. I’m nice like that.”

“Yes, the epitome of nice.” Maryse deadpanned. Then her eyes drifted to her son again, “Even if you could act however you wanted, Alec couldn’t. If the Accords were invoked-”

Alec cut his mother off, “I’ll tell you what I told her, I’m not a Shadowhunter.” Unlike his family he didn’t flinch at the admission, “The Clave took that away from me. I’m not a Downworlder either therefore, I am not tied to the Accords. She could try and invoke them, but I’m not required to do anything about it. She wants to be tried by the Shadowhunters? Good for her. It’s not like **I** can call the New York Institute up or anything. That would endanger my life which in turn would have further endangered my children. I’m Mundane now, Clave rules are not my own.”

“But… but you have a Downworlder child.” Maryse objected.

“I do and I plan on keeping him exposed and active in the Downworld community, however as a simple Mundane, someone yelling Accords at me means very little. I’m not a Downworlder in power and I’m definitely not a Shadowhunter. I’m just a person trying to raise his sons who will do anything to keep them safe. Even if it means using my angelic heritage to my advantage.” Alec could feel his family’s eyes on him. Taking him in. Possibly truly seeing him for the person he was. They knew he’d go to extreme length to protect those he loved and yet openly admitting to torture someone was a bit jarring and terrifying.

Maryse cleared her throat, “I don’t think the Clave had this in mind when they decided stripping a Shadowhunter of their Runes was written into Law.”

Alec leaned back against his boyfriend unperturbed, “The Clave thinks it’s infallible. They kicked me out of Shadowhunter Society, but they can’t stop me from being a part of the Downworld. They shouldn’t have made me a grey area. They knew I was dating a Warlock. They knew I was working on a Council that merged Downworlder and Shadowhunter societies. They should have known that I wasn’t going to leave all that behind merely because they stripped me. They also should have thought about what kicking me out and not being able to stop me from being part of the Downworld meant. I know up to this point it was basically unheard of, but I had shown no inclination of leaving the Shadow World forever. By the Angel, I went to live with my Warlock boyfriend. That should have been a big red flag for them.”

Izzy let out a laugh, “Oh Alec, never change.”

“I don’t plan on it.” Alec frowned.

Maryse shook her head, a small smile gracing her lips. She’d been terrified from the moment she found out Alec was going to be on trial and the resulting sentence. Some of that eased as the man before her held his head up high. Although she may not fully agree with what he planned on doing to the Warlock, she did understand perhaps better than most. He was a lot like her and wasn’t that a scary thought?

Finally the older woman said, “Just be careful, Alec. You don’t want eyes on you or the boys.” Her eyes bore into his. A warning that went deeper than a mere general warning.

“I know.” Was all he said.

Jace smirked as he stared at his brother, “The Clave will rue the day they kicked you out.” 

“Why’s that?” Alec frowned which was mirrored by the rest of the table.

“Magnus Bane, High Warlock of Brooklyn and one of the most powerful Warlocks currently alive dating Alec Lightwood, a grey area Nephilim. If you two were going to create waves when Alec was still a Shadowhunter, imagine what the two of you could do with Alec not having to follow the Clave's precious laws to the T.” Jace was leaning back looking cocky.

Magnus cocked his head with a Cheshire grin, “He’s not wrong. We do make a wonderful power couple. Imagine the change we could bring.”

With a snort Alec replied, “I’m a simple Mundane,” Jace nearly choked on his drink from snorting, “Raising two young boys. I gave up leadership dreams years ago.”

“Really Alec?” Izzy chuckled, “Simple? We just went over how grey you are.”

Alec shrugged, “I’m a simple Mundane until someone goes after my boys.” Then he frowned, “Or Magnus. Or one of you. Possibly my Downworlder friends. Definitely the Piro’s and my Mundane friends.”

“That’s quite a bit of an exception.” Izzy’s eyes were bright in entertainment.

“No one goes after my family.” Alec said with finality. He may no longer be a Shadowhunter and much preferred to live his simple life, but should anyone harm those he loved well… Hell hath no fury.

After everyone left for the night and the apartment held only the Mundane Lightwoods and Magnus, Alec found himself leaning on his boyfriend. Maxie was sleeping in his crib, while Rafe was snuggled against Magnus. They had yet found the desire to get up and tuck the young boy in. For now they were enjoying the quiet as the muted TV played some Lifetime movie. Eventually Alec whispered, “Would you really have let me mark the Warlock with angelic Runes?” The question had been tumbling around in his head for a few days. Wondering if Magnus would have looked at him differently if he actually drew any one the woman.

Magnus didn’t answer right away, but when he did his volume matched Alec’s, “Yes.”

The Nephilim started playing with the blanket draped over him, “Isn’t too cruel though? I mean I’ve heard stories about Nephilim not being able to bear Marks and we’ve seen what happens to Mundanes when they’re marked. Why would you be okay with… with what I had planned to do?”

“Alexander,” Magnus waited until his boyfriend looked at him, “I’m not a kind person. Although I try to be good, a part of me will always be Asmodeus’s son. He groomed me for a while to be like him; groomed my darker impulses. Although I try not to… embrace that part of me sometimes it does come through. When I saw that woman and all the other Warlocks I did see red, I saw black. I wanted nothing more than to slowly burn them with Edomian fire before sending them to my father to be played with for all eternity. I may hate my father, but he can be useful sometimes. I would have if it wasn’t for you.” A ringed finger stroked Alec’s cheek, “I knew you deserved a chance to speak with her and thus did nothing, but I would have. Oh Alexander, I was so close when she kept refusing to talk to just send her to the pits of Edom.”

Alec was quiet for a few seconds as he looked into Magnus’s eyes, finally he said, “We’re quite the pair, you and I?”

Magnus let out a soft laugh, “Yes, we are and I wouldn’t have it any other way.” His boyfriend hummed as he pushed up to kiss him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to be honest with you, I'm lacking motivation. I thought I had at least one more chapter written so I wasn't back to writing the week's chapter the same week. It's been rough. My mental state has been far better tan it was when I lived alone, but I'm frustrated, upset, and far more stressed/anxious than I'd like to admit. It's been two months (yes, TWO FREAKING MONTHS!) and I'm still waiting for my state board to approve my gd professional license. Which means I still can't work in the field I spent years in school for. This pandemic isn't helping and we've been put on state wide Shelter in Place. I just want to work. I want to feel like I have a purpose again and it's upsetting that the Board doesn't seem to give AF. I'll do my best to keep up the weekly updates because this fic is my baby and I do things I still want to happen without it feeling rushed, but my motivation is nearly non-existent. Please bare with me and I'm sorry if I'm a little scattered in my updating. Cheers and have a great week.


	7. One Step Forward

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***WARNING: Mention of anxiety attacks and meltdowns
> 
> A day later than intended, but this chapter was being difficult. Although it was a bit more of a reaction chapter (Can't really say filler because it's more than a filler), it needed to not only happen but I dislike writing chapters that are blah. For me each chapter has a purpose. Whether it is to further the plot, develop a character and make them more dimensional, or to wrap up/address something happening to them. I know not all chapters can be aces, but I don't want to just write something just to have something published. You and this story deserve better than that. Thus this chapter was a bit slow to write because even when I'm not the most motivated, I want to do it right.
> 
> I's like to thank you everyone who commented. I appreciate you taking the time to not only read my notes, but send words of encouragement. They meant a lot and I do love seeing them. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter and have a great week. Cheers, Angels!

Three days later Alec found himself tired and a little disheveled outside Rafe’s school. The morning had been a wild chaos of trying to get dressed with two children clinging to him as they cried for him not to leave. Almost an hour and a half later, he finally managed to walk the seven blocks to the school that was now mostly empty. Taking a deep breath, Alec walked through the doorway and headed for Mr. Clement’s room.

Although the meeting was pre-established, Alec was still nervous. He’d received a few emails and calls asking about Rafe and he didn’t need someone from the school calling Child Protective Services or some other agency on him. Especially after the horrors his sons had endured. This meeting was to clear up what happened and get Rafe back at school. Upon reaching the familiar door, Alec took another deep breath and knocked. Within a second Mr. Clement’s head popped up with a smile.

“Mr. Lightwood.” The younger man greeted as he stood and walked over. “How have you been?”

“Better. How are you?” Alec really hated small talk.

Smile never waiving, the man replied, “Quite well. Why don’t we take a seat and talk about what’s been going on with Rafe.” Once both men were sitting, he asked, “You didn’t want to talk about it over email. Is everything alright?”  
Alec was quiet for a few seconds arranging his words in a coherent manner without blurting out ‘my children were taken by psychotic Warlocks trying to sacrifice them to a goddamn demon! No nothing is alright!’ Rather he said, “Things are… getting better.” He looked down at his fingers and went straight to the point, “Last week Rafe and Maxie were kidnapped while being watched by one of my friends.” He heard Mr. Clement gasp and possibly (definitely) drop a few words that were inappropriate for children to hear. It made Alec almost smile. “They were missing for a few hours, but we… they were found and returned home safely. Magnus and I have been dealing with… the police about the matter while also trying to… trying to reassure both boys they’re safe. It’s been rough. They don’t want to leave our sight for more than a second so I’ve been keeping Rafe home, trying to figure out how to best handle what he went through and how to proceed.”

“Of course. Something like that is understandable as to why he hasn’t been in. Is he alright? Was he hurt?” True concern rang clearly through the other man’s words.

“A few scrapes and bruises, but nothing…” Alec shook his head trying to banish the image of either boy truly hurt. “More traumatized by the experience than actually hurt.”

“Which sadly can be worse.” Mr. Clement gave a sad look. “What are you thinking as a timeline for Rafe’s return?”

Alec sat back and let the question settle over him. He and Magnus had talked about what they should do quite a bit. If it was up to Alec, Rafe would never leave his sight again, however he knew that wasn’t healthy. “We have an appointment set up tomorrow for Rafe to talk with a therapist about what happened. If all goes well and they are a good fit, we want them to meet a time or two before Rafe returns.”

“I’m glad you are seeking professional help for him. I can send you home with what he has missed and some worksheets we’ll be going over this week if you’d like?” The teacher offered.

“That’d- that’d be great.” Alec nodded in thanks.

“It’s no problem. Please keep me updated on what is happening and when you believe he’ll be returning. If you have any questions about what we are working on please don’t hesitate to email me.” The smile on the man’s face was calming. Alec wondered if the man was more than he appeared because nothing seemed to ruffle him. 

“I will.”

With only slight hesitation, the younger man asked, “What of the kidnappers?”

Playing with the fraying edge of his sleeve, Alec replied, “They’ve been apprehended. I don’t think they’ll be seeing the light of day for a long time.”

“Good. To kidnap a child…” Mr Clement shook his head in disgust. “How are you and Magnus holding up? Can I do anything?”

“We’re… We’re alright. Been busy focusing on the boys and helping in any way with the case.” As in Magnus was taking care of the case since they wanted to keep Alec’s involvement out of it. Screw you Clave. “Magnus put a hold on his work, but is slowly transitioning back into it and I haven’t taken on any new jobs yet. It’ll be tough, but I hope to return soon.” He knew he needed to stay somewhat proactive in the modeling world or he’d be left behind by some new up and coming model. Some photographers might like him, but if Alec takes too long to come back they’ll find more reliable models to work with. ‘No hard feelings, it’s the biz.’ Or some ridiculous saying will be thrown at him before he gets less and less job offers. Which he couldn’t do. The job was mostly convenient and paid him well. With two growing boys, he needed the money.

With a smile once again on his face, the teacher said, “Hopefully everything will return to a semi-resemblance of normal. We look forward to seeing Rafe again. If you need anything, please let me know.”

“Thanks.” Alec stood up to shake Mr. Clement’s hand. “I’m sure Rafe will be excited to come back and see his friends again.”

“They do miss him.” The man walked over to his desk and started pulling papers out. “These are the work sheets he missed.” He put them into a manilla folder and wrote Rafe’s name on it. “They should be by the date we learned them. I’ll send you a rough itinerary of what we learned during the time he was out and what we will be learning through the end of this week.” He walked back over to Alec and handed him the folder. “If you have any questions, please email me.”

“I will. Thank you again.” Alec nodded as he looked over the sheets.

“Of course.” The pair walked to the classroom door and shook hands one last time. With a final farewell, Alec walked down to the office to speak quickly with the principal. This meeting was far more stressful for the Nephilim than the one with Rafe’s teacher. He knew nothing about the principal other than she was the head of the school. Luckily that meeting went as well as the one with Rafe’s teacher. She was concerned and assured Alec that as long as Rafe got the work done and seemed to keep up to date with the curriculum Rafe missing two weeks of school shouldn’t impact his progress to the next grade. With a thanks and yet another handshake, Alec left the school more than ready to see his boys again. 

He didn’t even have the door open for more than a second before Rafe crashed into him. Maxie wasn’t far behind as he ran, fell, picked himself up, and ran again at his father. Sitting on the ground, Alec held his boys close. Maybe he should talk to his therapist about Rafe returning to school because clearly he was just as affected by his being out as the boys. 

Several days, three hour and a half therapy sessions, lots of crying, and several movie marathons later, Alec was stress cleaning the dirty dishes into spotlessness as Rafe finished getting ready for school. Magnus watched partly entertained and 100% understanding as his boyfriend tried to keep his anxiety down. While the older Warlock manually dried the dishes Alec took far too long to clean, Izzy lounged at the kitchen table while Maxie babbled at her. A few words here and there were actual words instead of baby sounds. His vocabulary was slowly growing which made Alec beyond happy.

With only three dishes left to clean, Alec looked up when he heard the familiar pitter-patter of his eldest son’s feet. The little Nephilim was dressed neatly in his uniform while his cheeks were tear stained. It looked like another meltdown was on its way.

Wiping his hands on his pants, Alec walked over and pulled Rafe into a hug. **”It’s okay.** After several reassuring minutes, the Lightwood household walked the several blocks to Rafe’s school. They were running late, however Alec found no need to rush them. He didn’t want to set Rafe or himself off. The day was going to be stressful enough, he didn’t need to add to it. Thus after signing Rafe in at the office for being a half hour late, the small group walked to the classroom. 

Before knocking on the door, Alec squatted down. Running his fingers through Rafe’s hair soothingly, he whispered, “Everything is going to be fine. Magnus and I will be waiting for you after school and Aunt Izzy is going to be with you all day. She’ll be right next to you, okay?”

“All day?” The boy looked up at his aunt with his big brown eyes that were glazed with unshed tears.

With a gentle yet confident smile, the young woman replied, “Of course. Nothing is going to tear me away from you.” She pulled her nephew into a tight hug that had him melting into it.

“Rafe,” Alec called to his son and only started talking when the boy turned his head to look, “No one else should be able to see Aunt Izzy. She’s going to be glamoured. You remember what that is?” The boy nodded though there was a bit of a shiver associated with that, “I know you’re going to want to talk to her and touch her, but try not to, okay? I know it’s not fair, but you can’t.”

With a small pout, Rafe nodded, “I’ll try not to.”

“That’s all I ask. Come here.” He held his arms out and the boy ran into them. “Everything is going to be okay. Aunt Izzy will be with you and we’ll pick you up at the end of the day. You’re safe, Rafe. You’re going to be okay.” Rafe whimpered a little before pulling back and squaring his shoulders. Carefully wiping the tears away, Alec asked, “Ready?” Although there was doubt in the little boy’s eyes, he nodded before giving Magnus a hug. The older Warlock whispered something to Rafe that had the boy relaxing a little more. Finally it was time for him to go to school.

Straightening up, Alec knocked on the door and the little family waited. Not even a minute later Mr. Clement opened the door and instantly smiled. “Hello, Rafe. Good to see you.”

The boy looked down for a moment before muttered, “Good morning, Mr. Clement.”

“You came just in time for some phonics.” The young man then looked up with his smile still in place, “Mr. Lightwood. Mr. Bane. How are you?”

“Good thank you.” Magnus replied politely. It’d been a while since someone called him Mr. Bane with respect instead of disgust.

“Good.” Alec gave a tight smile. “We should get going.” Suddenly he felt awkward and like his insides were a jittering mess. This was why he hadn’t had coffee or sugar in a week. He could only imagine what kind of mess he’d be if he had those stimulants in his system. Trying to keep himself from vibrating into another frequency, Alec bent down one last time to say goodbye to his son. So quiet that even Izzy had a hard time hearing him, Alec said, “If you need anything, Aunt Izzy is here for you. Have fun with your friends and remember you are safe.”

“Okay.” Rafe whispered back. “I love you.”

“Love you too, Buddy. Go have fun.” Alec watched as Mr. Clement took Rafe’s hand, waved to them, and went back to class. Izzy threw a smile at her brother as she gracefully followed her nephew to the coat closet. She was quite curious what six year olds learned at Mundane school.

Once they were no longer needed Alec bee lined it to the exit of the school where he managed to make it out of the school limits before squatting down and having an anxiety attack.

As promised, Alec and Magnus were in the school yard waiting for Rafe’s first day back to end. Sometime in the last hour Jace and Clary had made their way to New Jersey and were also standing with them. Clary mainly talked with Magnus, while Jace charmed the parents of Rafe’s friends who were all glad he had finally returned to school.

To Alec’s relief, Rafe looked far more relaxed and was actually smiling when he filed out with his class. He was talking with Carter and Jasmine, but stopped abruptly the moment he caught sight of his dad. Completely forgetting about his friends, he bolted and almost toppled Alec. “Hey, Bud.” The anxiety that had been threatening to cause yet another attack settled the moment his son was in his arms. “How was school?”

“Okay.” Rafe muttered into the side of Alec’s neck. After a minute he pulled away to hug Magnus then Jace and Clary. The group only stayed for a few more minutes before they left to go home. A few blocks away, Izzy unglamoured herself finally free to talk to people. Rafe talked about his day and how he actually had fun with his friends after being away from them for so long. Once inside they had a snack, Rafe started on his homework, and the adults sat nearby talking. Izzy went over her day and how much fun, if not a little boring, it was to see what Rafe did all day at school. Jace grumbled how he wanted to be the one to watch his nephew at school.

With a snicker, Izzy goaded, “That’s what you get for not only sucking at Rock Paper Scissors, but also pissing Lydia off.”

“I still maintain I am innocent.” The blonde crossed his arms and sniffed.

Izzy’s perfect eyebrow rose in a challenging manner, “Really now?”

“How was I supposed to know the sac was going to explode all over her?” He defended.

“You weren’t,” Izzy conceded for all of two seconds before finishing with, “But poking it after Lydia specifically said not to, causing it to rupture, and then it covering her head to toe in nasty smelling goo would piss anyone off.”

“It wasn’t that bad.” He muttered with a pout.

“Jace, she took four showers and still smelled terrible.” Clary looked at her boyfriend unimpressed. “She had to ask Magnus for a potion to help! Her clothes were ruined and she still had a meeting to go to.”

“That’s why Lydia contacted me?” Magnus looked at Clary in surprise. “Maybe I should send the bill to Jace then. Did the potion work?”

Jace squawked, while Clary nodded, “Yes, thankfully. She smelled like clean cotton or freshly done laundry.”

“Good, I wasn’t sure what scent she wanted. All I got was ‘I need something to wash away the scent of putrid filth.’ Glad I could help.” Magnus smiled.

Clary nodded, “She looked a lot happier after the potion you sent her. I almost thought she was going to murder Jace after it happened.”

“It wasn’t _that_ bad.” Jace threw his hands up.

“Says the man who nearly vomited when he was hit by the odor.” Clary shot back with a glare.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Clary merely muttered a _riiiight_ before the topic switched to something mundane. Not long later, the Shadowhunters had to leave and get ready for patrol. With big long hugs from everyone, Rafe said goodbye to his aunts and uncle. They promised someone would be at the apartment in the morning to spend the day with him at school. 

Knowing that he had someone watching him while he was away from his father and Magnus decreased Rafe’s meltdowns drastically. He still would throw tantrums or tumble into a panic attack from time to time, but overall he started to feel once again secure that not everyone was out to get him. Twice a week he and Alec would make their way to a Downworlder therapist to talk through the trauma of being kidnapped. More often than not Alec would be in the room with Rafe as his sessions happened. Over time and as the little boy grew to trust his therapist, Alec would spend some time out in the waiting room so the boy could talk to the therapist freely. Although it looked like it would be quite a long road to emotional stability and have confidence that not every Mundane or Downworlder was after him, Alec knew Rafe was moving in the right direction. Slowly the little Nephilim was regaining trust in not only the people around him, but also the few stranger Magnus and Alec would introduce him to. It was a slow road, but Rafe was moving forward.


	8. Life Debt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally another chapter that I am pleased with. It was giving me some trouble, but overall I am happy with how it came out. We get to re-meet a character I adored in the show. I hope you enjoy it and have a great week! Cheers, Angels.
> 
> PS For those who possibly know about it or possibly interested, GISH might be putting on another one day scavenger hunt. I really hope they do because it was amazing! Cheers!

As the weeks passed, life in the Lightwood/Bane household started to settle back to semi-normal. Magnus was back to being the High Warlock of Brooklyn only occasionally canceling an appointment or taking the night ‘off’ to spend time with the boys if they were particularly fussy. Maxie woke from nightmares or clung a little bit more, but overall he was still the happy baby everyone knew him to be. If he didn’t welcome strangers as he once had, no one could blame him. Alec returned to modeling and steadily received more job offers until most weeks he was back to two to three a week. The anxiety that had been building and rolling through him started to ebb as familiar routines started to form once more. He decreased his therapy sessions which felt like a major accomplishment. He wasn’t sure that was going to happen anytime soon. As for Rafe, he was also slowly letting his guard down. He was attending classes more often without a familial guardian; most weeks Izzy, Max, or Jace only went three times a week instead of all five. He was able to relax as he ran around outside like a child should with little fear he would be taken again. It took time, but slowly everyone was moving forward from the traumatic event that had happened.

While Rafe was having a good day and was actually on his third day in a row without a glamoured guardian watching over him at school, Alec’s day was going okay. He had a particularly early shoot that had him out of the house before the boys were awake and the sky still dark and sleeping. He dozed in the makeup chair and only woke up after his third cup of coffee he knew he'd regret later. For whatever reason, the photographer wanted the sunrise as the backdrop and instead of creating one in a studio, the seven models, dozens of hands, and the photographer froze their asses off. Gwen did her best not to ruin either her hair or her makeup as she huddled inside Alec’s coat while they waited for their turn. They weren’t sure what was worse: Standing and waiting or posing while exposed to the elements. Alec may have been dressed in a three piece suit, but the material did very little for the icy winds that blew as dawn broke over the horizon.

The shoot was one that would be forever immortalized for how freezing it was. The photographer never seemed to make up his mind and had them reshooting poses several times. Alec hoped he never worked with the man again. His mind seemed to be too chaotic to get anything done. Even Gwen looked at him like she was ready to just walk off set. Something she would never do in a hundred years because she actually **liked** being a model. By the time they were done, Gwen declared she was going home to take a long, hot bath and erase the day from her memory. In all honesty Alec couldn’t blame her. 

She was long gone before he finished changing and giving the suit back. It was a testimony in and of itself that she had completely left Alec behind. In all the time they’d been working together, never once had she left without at least telling him she didn’t need him to walk her home or to the station. With a shrug and a text for her to let him know she made it home safe, Alec stood on the sidewalk deciding what to do. It was still early enough that Rafe was at school for a few more hours and he knew Jafa or someone was watching Maxie. It wasn’t often Alec was able to drop by the loft without the kids. He knew Magnus was most likely working, but I’d be nice to bring him something to eat and relax for a bit before he went back to the wonderful chaotic life of being a father. With his mind made up, he headed towards the loft while deciding which place to pick up lunch. 

All was going to plan until he heard noise off to his right. Looking around, no one else seemed to have heard anything. With a sigh, Alec headed towards the sound hoping it was nothing more than a cat or rat. Unfortunately for him, it was something much larger than either and far more ugly and smelly. To his distress, a small child coward in the corner as a demon snarled and snapped its jaws. Sliding a dagger from his boot, he threw it at the monster. It roared as the blade embedded itself in its shoulder. Whipping around, it’s toxic blue eyes glared at him before it charged. 

While Alec was a bit out of practice, he had made it a near nightly point to spar with his Downworlder friends. After the fight with the Warlocks, Alec wanted to make sure he could at least defend himself and his sons if something tried to attack them. Which was probably a good idea considering how difficult it was to not get sliced to pieces. Not having runes sucked. By the time he finally killed it (Jace would laugh at him for how long it took him), he was bruised, had several cuts, and smelled like death. Now he really just wanted to go to the loft and see his boyfriend. But he couldn’t. First he had to make sure the child was alright and return them to their parents. 

The child coward more as he approached. Squatting down, Alec realized it wasn’t any mere child but a Seelie. This complicated things a bit. “Hey,” His voice dropped to a soothing tone he used whenever Rafe or Maxie was frightened, “It’s alright. The demon is gone. You hurt anywhere?” The child shook her head. “Good. My name is Alec, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Big bright eyes stared at him for a few seconds before muttering, “Liliana.”

“Beautiful name. Ready to go home?” She nodded while unfolding herself. Carefully taking his hand, the pair started towards the street. For a moment Alec stopped and tried to remember all of the entry points to the Seelie Realm. There couldn’t be one too far away if Liliana was wandering around on her own. “Liliana? Do you know where the closest doorway is to your realm?” Looking down slightly ashamed, she nodded her head. “Mind showing me the way? The only one I know of is the river in Central Park.” With another nod, she started down the sidewalk. With the streets being crowded, as they usually were in New York especially during the lunch hour, Alec ended up picking the girl up. Not long into the journey to the Seelie Realm, Alec could feel himself getting woozy. The tall tale signs of demon poison spreading through his body made him want to groan, but he refrained. By the time they made it to the doorway, Alec knew he looked paler than usual with a possible sheen over his skin.

With only a nod as confirmation from the little girl, Alec didn’t think twice as he walked straight into a graffiti mural. He was only in the realm for mere milliseconds before he was surrounded by Seelie knights. Carefully and telegraphing his movements, he placed Liliana down. “The king wishes to see you.” One knight commanded before the group turned and started down the forest road. With Liliana’s hand still in his, Alec followed knowing only bad things would happen if he didn’t. To his surprise a familiar Seelie sat on the throne only gracefully standing when the group stepped into the glade.

Meliorn’s eyes shifted down as he greeted, “Liliana. We were worried.” A calm smile that was oh so familiar to Alec graced the man’s lips. The girl ran over to the king and threw her arms around him. He muttered something softly into her ear before gently pushing her to his right. “Your parents are waiting, little one. Go.” The girl turned to look at Alec, gave a slight head bow, and darted off disappearing behind a curtain of vines and flowers. Now that the girl was gone, the king’s eyes rested on Alec. “Alexander Lightwood. I never thought I would see you again.” The graceful movements Meliorn sported reminded Alec of a panther. He was well aware he was potential prey.

“Never thought I’d see you again either.” He gave a slight bow since he was in the presence of royalty. “Congratulations on becoming king.”

“Yes,” The smile the man wore was sarcastic and yet very pleased with the promotion. “It was unfortunate that our queen met her demise, but I will not complain.” His eyes flitted over Alec, actually taking the man in. “We shall talk more soon, but for now my fey will draw you a bath and new clothes. We shall dine when you are clean.”

Now didn’t that sound awful. “I appreciate the offer,” Alec gave another slight bow, “But I really could not impose.”

“It is I who is offering. You saved one of our children, that will not go unnoticed. We shall dine when you no longer smell and are no longer on the verge of death.” The king nodded to a few members of the court. Two men and a woman appeared by Alec’s side and guided him to a simple, yet beautiful tent with a bath already filled. The scent coming off the water was pleasant. Light, but not too perfumy. A lounge chair was off to the side with a light green set of clothes he’d seen many of the fey wear while wandering around the glade. 

Setting his backpack next to the chair, Alec wasn’t sure what was protocol for this sort of event. He’d been trained to interact with the Seelies since he was a child and knew most formalities. This however, was never covered. Maybe he should have listened to Izzy whenever she went to met with Meliorn. He felt awkward and like he was about to pass out. The latter probably because he had demon venom coursing through him. Feeling mildly uncomfortable, Alec unbuckled the sheaths around his ankles. Seconds after placing the daggers with his backpack, he turned to find the two male Seelies next him. He froze, unsure what was happening. It all became quite clear the moment one stepped behind him and started pulling off his jacket. They were there to assist him. Wonderful. 

By the time the female Seelie was finished with the milky bath, Alec was guided to the water and helped him. To his pleasant surprise the bath was deep enough for his long body and limbs to fit comfortably. As they left, he thanked them. With a shallow bow, the trio disappeared, leaving Alec alone. 

Taking a few minutes to enjoy the warmth that seeped through his body and into his core, Alec felt himself relax. He did his best not to slip into a nap. Although he knew time moved differently in the Seelie Realm, Alec would much rather sleep at Magnus’s surrounded by his boyfriend’s scent and noise than there. Allowing himself several minutes to let the day and some of his troubles bleed away, he listened to the Seelie world around him. Off in the distance several instruments were being played; lulling him. A whole symphony of songs and calls from different creatures drifted into the tent adding to the music. Overall it was one of the most serene baths Alec had ever had. Nonetheless, he knew he needed to get up and dress. He had lunch with Meliorn and he wanted to go see Magnus before he went to pick Rafe up.

Finally after what felt like hours, Alec started to wash the grime from the fight and the makeup he hadn’t bothered to take off. It was satisfying to get the gel out of his hair. By the time he was finished with cleaning himself, the Seelie trio had returned. One of the males stood by the bath with a towel, while the woman and the other male set up a screen for him. The treatment he was receiving was a little nerve wracking. After countless hours in class about Seelies and politics and traditions that barely covered anything, Alec still felt like he had no idea what was going on. The treatment he was receiving had never been touched. He wasn’t sure the Shadowhunters knew the Seelies would treat anyone other than one of their own like this.

The towel he was given was the softest thing Alec had ever felt. If he wasn’t afraid of angering the Seelies and being cursed or something equally worse, he’d consider taking one for him and Magnus. His boyfriend needed to have one. It was like being hugged by a cloud or a marshmallow without becoming sticky. It was amazing. He silently said farewell to the wonderful material as he let it drop from his body and started changing into equally comfortable material. It was light like linen but seemed to maintain a perfect temperature. To his surprise the pants were even a little long on him. Seelies were a scary group of beings.

Stepping out from behind the dressing screen, Alec picked up his backpack, slipped on a pair of what looked to be slippers, and was silently instructed to sit on a chair. Unsure what was going to happen, Alec sat and went rim-rod still as one of the Seelie’s started combing his hair. Apparently he really was being pampered today. It made him uncomfortable. Were they getting him ready to sacrifice him or something? He was beginning to wonder.

Once Alec’s hair was combed and pulled back into a low ponytail with what he was sure were little flowers woven in, he followed the Seelies back to the court. Meliorn was already there; waiting. He gestured for Alec to sit to his right where a place was already prepared. Once the young man was seated, Meliorn looked at him, “I hope your bath was to your liking.”

Alec’s eyes tracked as the court Seelies moved around them to pour goblets of sweet wine and place plates of dazzling food before them. “It was, thank you.” He paused for a second before saying, “I am a bit confused by such hospitality. I mean no disrespect, I greatly appreciate it, but I am a mere Nephilim. I don’t believe I warrant such treatment.”

Meliorn hummed as he took a sip of his drink, “You saved not only a Seelie, but a child. You expect nothing except a safe passage out once you returned her. We are grateful and in your debt.”

“I was only doing what was right.” He wanted to say anyone would have helped, but even he knew that was a lie. Especially now with the rift in the Shadow World. “She needed help and I could offer her my limited skills. I know better than anyone the terror of having a child lost to them.”

Meliorn grinned, “Yes, you do.” Then his face turned solemn. “I hope your children are alright.”

Alec wasn’t surprised the king knew of them. He was pretty sure most of New York’s Down World knew. “They are… okay. My youngest is fairing a little better than my oldest.”

“Rafael and Max, am I correct?” The king picked up a fruit and took a bite.

Alec stared at the man for a moment unsure how to respond. The question sounded innocent, but with Seelies one never knew what truly laid behind a question. “Yes.”

With a nod, Meliorn pressed no further and simple conversation flowed. They spoke of the Shadow World even though Alec’s knowledge was surprisingly limited in its affairs. “You may eat, Alec. No surprises will come to you or make you stay among us once we have dined. You have my word.”

Staring down at his plate, and carefully took a bite not wanting to offend the Seelies. He really hoped he didn’t just damn himself into figuring out a way to get a message to Magnus to save him. He’ll find out once he tries to leave.

As the course started to come to an end, Meliorn turned to look at Alec a little more serious. With a sip that finished his wine, the king put it down and folded his hands, “Alexander Lightwood, you have saved not only one of my people but a child from a demon that would have killed her,” Alec shifted in his seat suddenly feeling a little anxious. “We are in your debt. A life debt must be paid. Anything within my power is yours. No string attached.”

Alec blinked. He thought his payment was this: a nice bath, a pampering, and dining with the king without fear of having to stay behind. “Mel- Your Majesty, I… There is no need-”

“You saved one of ours. It is our way. When Clarissa saved me, I was in her debt and as such helped her find her mother.” Alec remembered. He put Jace and himself through such agony to the point of almost ruining their Parabatai Bond. How he disliked her then. How he hated himself.

“We Seelies do not like being in debt to anyone, but we always pay our debts back. What is it you want that I can give?” Meliorn cocked his head a little, “Money? Fame?” An amused grin spread over his lips knowing none of that mattered to the man before him, “To be a Shadowhunter again?” Alec clenched his jaw at the offer, “Protection for you sons? Immortality?” Although he tried to maintain a calm facade, Alec’s heart ramped up at the offers Melionr was offering, “Anything and it’s yours.”

The pressure to blurt out anything was overpowering, but Alec bit his lip and took a breath. Finally he opened his mouth and asked, “Do I need to make a decision now or can I think about it?”

Meliorn sat back and appeared to appraise Alec, “You may think on it.”

“Thank you. I would like to think about it before I give an answer.” 

“Of course,” Meliorn bowed his head. They finished their meal without any further mention of the life debt. As Alec stood to leave, the king said his farewell and then added, “Alec, please inform Jafa Birch, Clen Penthallow, and Lyal Wight I would like to see them.”

Some of the blood drained from Alec’s face. “Of course. Have a good day, Your Majesty.” Meliorn nodded and turned to do whatever he did when he wasn’t entertaining guests. Soon, Alec was escorted to the realm’s exit and he found himself not far from Magnus’s loft. He was pleasantly surprised he wasn’t freezing by the time he walked up the building stairs and gently knocked on the door as he pushed it open.

“Magnus?” He called, slipping his boots off. He managed to get them back though apparently the rest of his clothes, including his jacket, were a lost cause.

From where the apothecary was, Alec heard his boyfriend shout, “In here, Darling.” Placing his bag down, he wandered over to the room. For a few seconds he watched Magnus flutter around gathering ingredients for the potion he was working on. “Give me a moment and I’ll be all yours.” The Warlock smiled, but didn’t really look over to where Alec leaned on the door jam. As promised a few moments later, Magnus left the potion on simmer and walked over. “Hello, my love.” He placed a kiss on Alec's lips as he gathered the man in his arms. “You smell lovely,” Then frowned, “And have flowers in your hair and are not wearing the clothes you were wearing this morning. Is that a Seelie outfit?”

“Hello.” Alec grinned down. He pecked Magnus’s confused frown before replying, “I’ve had quite the morning.”

“Apparently. Come,” He took Alec’s hand, “You can tell me all about it while I wait for this potion to finish.” They wandered over to the couch where Magnus magicked two cocktails and snuggled. “So, mind telling me why you’re wearing Seelie threads?”

“I was walking here after work when I heard a noise,” Alec told Magnus of his grand adventure that really just weirded him out because Seelies didn’t tend to treat others kindly. There was always some ploy to screw you over. Years of interacting with the previous Queen had taught him that. “So now they owe me a life debt and let me keep these clothes. It was strange. I don’t even think Izzy was treated like this.”

Magnus’s cocktail had long been forgotten as he listened to Alec. His eyes wide in surprise and slight disbelievement. “You are something else, Alexander. Truly you are.” He shook his head, “You didn’t tell Meliorn what you wanted?”

“No,” Alec leaned his head on the back of the couch, “I didn’t know what I wanted. It’s a lot of pressure. Also, I want to think of the wording. Wording is everything with Seelies.”

“Good looking, caring, and _smart_. I won the lottery with you.” Magnus pulled Alec onto his lap so the younger man was straddling him.

With a snort, the Nephilim replied, “Only had to get passed several layers of internal homophobia, almost getting married to Lydia, _and_ disappearing for a little over a year. Yeah, you really won with me. Oh yeah and crippling depression and anxiety that hit from time to time.”

“Keeps me on my toes.” Leaning up Magnus captured Alec’s lips. “Alexander Gideon Lightwood, you are wonderful.”

Alec hummed before whispering, “Compliment will get you somewhere.”

“Is it in your pants?” Magnus grinned into his boyfriend’s lips, “I really hope it’s your pants.” Before Alec could reply, a timer went off that caused the Warlock to groan. “It was just getting good.”

Barking out a laugh, Alec kissed Magnus’s nose, “Go finish your potion and I’ll make tea. If you’re good, we can revisit this tonight.” Slipping off the Warlock’s lap he started for the kitchen, he paused and looked over his shoulder, “Pants, forbidden.” The Nephilim couldn’t help but laugh as his Warlock let out a whoop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been evaluating why this fic has been difficult to continue writing. I know part of it was what I've talk about before, but I've come to realize, like most things in life, there are many compounding elements to this _why_. The quarantine effecting my mental state being one, but also I can't form a routine. I like writing generally in the morning or at night (if I've worked) alone. Before everyone wakes or while they are working. It was in a way easier when I lived by myself because it was just me, but now I live with (currently) four other people whose schedules are all over the place. If I'm up before those home usually one of my friend's is sleeping on the couch. I could write in my room, but I like looking out the window and natural light to which I don't have in the basement. I get anxious writing around people I know thus feel weird writing with him in the room even if he is sleeping.
> 
> I've also talked with my partner in crime and I've been with this story for a while. Years. I started this when I was still in school and wrote when I was procrastinating studying or waiting in between classes. I don't have that now. I adore this story and the journey Alec and Magnus are going through, but I'm burned out. I have written down what I want to happen hereon. This story will finish and I will keep it up to standard that I have written thus far. But it's ending. It has to. I wish I was more motivated, but I'm not. It's time for this story to come to an end. So thank you. Everyone who has read this story, left kudos, and/or comments a Big Thank You. You mean so much to me.


	9. Oh, Hello

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pulled some spoilers from the later books (the ones with Emma) so _**SPOILERS!!!!!!**_. Things just got interesting again (not that they weren't before but you'll see what I mean).
> 
> Cheers, Angels! Have a great week.

Depending on how one’s perspective, Alec’s day had either become more complicated, more interesting, exceptionally chaotic, or just another day. For the young father of two that stood before his youngest son while not looking his best, he went with another day. In fact the sight before him caused him to sigh as his head fell back contemplating his life. Yes, just another day in the Lightwood household.

Reorganizing his day because although the sight before him barely made him flinch, it was still a top priority. The child could hurt himself or others. Taking a breath, he calmly stepped forward and in a calm but firm voice said, “Maxie, no silverware.” Plucking the two spoons, two forks, and butter knife from the air, he put them down and handed the boy his stuffed Cerberus. “Play with your toys.” The boy stared at his father for a few seconds before letting out a gleeful shriek and clapping. Within seconds the worn toy was floating causing the boy even more glee. “Good boy, Maxie.” he ran his fingers through his son’s hair in praise.

Any other day Alec would have been to the moon with excitement. A part of him was. His son was showing signs of **magic**! Unfortunately, the day had turned out to be more chaotic than usual. Rafe was back to being difficult for Alec and had thrown a world class tantrum ten minutes before they had to leave for school. The house was a bit of a mess and needed a serious cleaning. Alec had a video meeting with his manager about upcoming spreads and events that might be more problematic now if Maxie was playing with his magic. He also had a few errands he needed to run that he really had no desire to actually do. To top it all off, when he looked in the closet earlier for an outfit he found nothing. Apparently, laundry had once again fallen to the wayside and needed to be done. Thus after putting a second load in, he’d turned around to find his son gleefully making the silverware from breakfast floating around him. Just another item on the list. An important item, but another nonetheless.

Getting sucked into the new fascinating world of his son causing his toys to float, Alec nearly had a heart attack when his phone alarm went off signalling he had exactly twenty minutes before his meeting with Theresa. Cursing in Romanian (learned that from his mom), he picked Maxie up and darted for his room. Placing the boy on the bed so he could be within eyesight while playing, Alec cursed his lack of clothes. Sighing, he borrowed a button up shirt from Magnus and a pair of jeans that may be not as clean as they could be. They didn’t have food or baby drool on them at least. 

Bringing Maxie into the bathroom with him, the Nephilim did his best to clean up his beard and look less haggard than he felt. He didn’t look photoshoot ready, but at least he looked presentable and not like he spent a year as a vagabond. He was intimately aware of what that looked like. Satisfied with how he looked, Alec picked his son up again and set everything up for the meeting. 

All in all, the meeting took about an hour and a half to sort everything out for the next three months. There was a nice mix between up and coming brands and famous ones. After writing the dates and times for the shoots, the pair caught up on life since they last talked before Theresa had to leave for another appointment. With a final farewell the screen went blank leaving Alec to run his hands down his face. It was only eleven and he needed a nap. Looking over at Maxie the boy was anything but tired. He chewed happily on a block he had sort of been building with. “No?” He asked his son knowing full well nap time wouldn’t be happening anytime soon. “No. Alright, what are we making?” Sitting next to his son the little boy squealed happily handing his father a spit covered block. “Thanks, Blueberry.” The life of a father.

While Alec helped place blocks on a wobbly foundation, Luci trotted over and laid down next to him. She watched with half lidded eyes as the father son pair played. After one particularly intense dream where she was clearly chasing squirrels (or maybe a few demons), her leg knocked down their leaning tower. Maxie shrieked in surprise before giggling up a storm. Clearly the fall of the tower was the best thing to happen. After that they’d only build it up so far before Maxie destroyed the tower. Sometimes he’d use his hands, other times he’d use his magic. Alec was both proud and concerned at how well he seemed to be using his gifts. 

Sometime around one, Maxie conked out allowing Alec to start picking up the apartment. He was on his third load of laundry when the boy finally woke up and demanded his attention. Closing the lid, the Nephilim left the washer to do its thing while he went to get his son ready for some errands. By the time they went to pick Rafe up, they only had to go to the market to pick up a few ingredients for supper. This apparently was not something the older boy wanted to do. Throughout the whole walk to the market, picking up the ingredients, and walking home, the boy huffed and mumbled about not wanting to do the errand. By the time they got home, Alec shooed Rafe downstairs to say hi to the Piro’s so he could put the groceries away without his constant muttering. He was too exhausted to deal with his irant son at that time.

Once everything was away and the laundry switched, the young man carried his youngest son downstairs to spend some time with their Italian grandparents. While Rafe did homework and Maxie played in his playpen, Alec played the piano he had been neglecting lately. It was soothing to be behind the keys and get mostly lost in the melodies he had come to know well over the years. 

By the time Magnus finally got home, Alec had every intention of telling his boyfriend of Maxie’s development. However, as life often goes, things got chaotic and he may have forgotten the big news. It wasn’t until a few days later when they were hosting Cat, Madzie, his family, and Petra and Ionna that Maxie being magical came up again. He probably should have been more surprised or reactive upon the sight he came across, but alas Alec wasn’t. He hadn’t really slept more than four hours a night for the last week and Rafe was being wyley again. Thus as he stared up at the curtain rod in his room he just sighed. Closing the door behind him, he paused by Magnus’s head where the man sat on the couch talking to Cat and Maryse. “Magnus, can Warlocks shapeshift?”

Looking up with a smile Magnus replied, “Yes. Some can do it naturally while others have to practice.” Frowning, he asked, “Why?”

Staring off into space for a few seconds, Alec finally said, “Our son is a bat. A very blue sleeping bat.”

“What?” Came from several people in the room.

A look of realization slowly dawned on the Nephilim’s face. “Oh. Yes, Maxie started exhibiting magic.”

“And you didn’t tell me? Us?” Magnus cried.

“I forgot. Tuesday was busy.” Alec shrugged.

In disbelief Magnus asked, “So busy Maxie having magic just slipped your mind?”

“Yes.” Still staring at the wall in front of him, Alec said, “He’s hanging on our curtain rod.” Then he turned and went to get a drink. He must have been there longer than intended because before he knew it he felt arms slide around his waist.

Familiar lips pecked his neck. “You alright, Darling?”

“I’m feeling sluggish and foggy.” Alec replied as he stared at his mug of tea that appeared to still be full and untouched.

“Why don’t you go lay down? Maxie’s still napping, maybe he’ll see you and finish his nap with you in his normal human form.” The pair could hope anyway. Instead of replying, Alec hummed, turned to hug his boyfriend for a little while, and then walked off to face plant onto his bed. By the time he woke up he found himself curled around his little Blueberry who was babbling nonsensically to himself.

Gathering his son in his arms, Alec kissed the boy’s cheek, “Hello, have a nice nap?”

“Dada!” Maxie cried happily. He shoved his face into Alec’s neck and sighed.

“Hey, buddy.” Taking a few moments to enjoy holding Maxie, he then got up and started for the living room. Conversation paused for a moment as everyone focused on the pair. 

Magnus was the first to break the silence, “Hello, Darling. My little Blueberry.” He got up and gracefully rounded the couch. “I see you have surprises in store for us.” He smiled down as the little boy.

“Ma! Ma!” Maxie gleefully cried as he held out his arms for the older Warlock.

Easily taking the boy in his arms, the older Warlock smiled down at him. The couple rejoined the party with Maxie staying in Magnus’s lap for all of five minutes before demanding to see everyone again. Once satisfied with the attention by all, he wormed his way to the floor to play. By 8:30pm the house was clear of everyone that didn’t live there and while Alec attempted to help Rafe with his bath, Magnus cooed over Maxie. Although the boy hadn’t displayed any magic since waking from his nap Magnus still praised him. The boy gleefully babbled at his father figure up to and even after the older Warlock put him down for bed. With a chuckle, Magnus closed the door and listened to the baby monitor as Maxie continued whatever conversation he was having with his stuffies.

The couple plopped on the couch once Rafe was finally in bed. For whatever reason the young Nephilim had a meltdown when they told him it was time for bed. Nothing soothed the boy as he wailed that he didn’t want to go to sleep. He especially didn’t want a kiss from Alec which led the older Nephilim to relent and quietly tell him good-night. Finally, the boy settled down enough for Magnus and Alec to leave him to fall asleep. 

Alec’s eyes were shut as his head dropped back to rest on the couch. “I need to talk to his therapist.” He whispered, not wanting to disturb the quiet. Magnus didn’t reply right away and the other man could feel warm brown eyes on him.

“Do you think he knows and hasn’t said anything?” Magnus asked.

“I don’t know, but maybe he has a better answer than I’m a completely useless parent whose son doesn’t like him.” Alec answered.

“Oh Alexander.” The younger man felt himself gently being pulled into the warm body of his boyfriend, “You are not useless, nor does Rafe dislike you. Unfortunately, you are an easy target for his negative feelings. If anything this should tell you how much he does care and trust you. I don’t think he’d treat you this way if he didn’t. He knows he can act like a little shit to you and you still will care for him.”

Alec sighed, still not opening his eyes, “I hope so. This isn’t helping my mental state.”

“I know, my dear. I know.” He held his boyfriend for a while before kissing the man’s temple, “So… Maxie has powers.”

“Yep,” Alec finally opened his eyes to stare at the black TV, “He has powers.”

“I feel like this should be discussed by future Magnus and Alexander.” 

With a yawn, Alec mumbled, “I concur and support this notion.”

“Approved. Future Magnus and Alexander will discuss how to handle a baby Warlock with powers tomorrow. Game plans shall be made.” Magnus decreed.

“Hear, h _er_ -” Alec dropped off into sleep with Magnus’s fingers combing through his hair and a quiet lullaby being hummed.


	10. Oh Rafe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Emotional chapter, but all ends well. Yay! I hope you enjoy this chapter and have a great week! Cheers, Angels!

The couple’s discussion basically came down to: Magnus will guide Maxie with his powers, show him simple spells for him to copy, correct him when he does something dangerous like levitate sharp/breakable objects, let him use his gifts within the safety of the apartment or anywhere where people _know_ what he is, and unfortunately dampen his powers while he is out in public until he understands that he’s not allowed to use them sometimes (or at least how to be discrete). The shady Downworlders weren’t huge fans of the idea that the couple wanted to dampen the little Warlocks powers (because rude!), but also understood that Maxie’s world included Mundanes that had no idea Warlocks existed. They didn’t need mass panic or Shadowhunters going after the tiny Warlock just because he was a baby with gifts. Everyone knew how bad that could be. Thus the Lightwood apartment once again got more interesting as the family and friends in the know tried to navigate having a baby Warlock with active powers. The first time Maxie shifted while being watched by a few of the Downworlders had been funny if not an ‘oops’ moment. Seriously, they freaked out when they called Alec about his son being a bat. Apparently Rafe was laughing too hard to tell them anything. It was a good chuckle afterwards, but for the first couple minutes it was a bit embarrassing. 

And so life went on. Magnus went to work helping the Downworld of New York City, Alec played with the boys when he didn’t have a photoshoot, Rafe went to school while temper tantrums came and went, and Maxie explored his new powers. A few days before a shoot that was more volunteer than actually a job, Alec found himself waiting for Rafe’s therapy session to conclude. While he waited he was browsing the internet and texting Petra and Cat (separately). For Petra he had an idea and was hoping she would help him hash out his thoughts. Normally he would have talked to Magnus, but this was more of a mundane thing and trusted her opinion on the matter. On the other hand, what he was talking to Cat about was something he couldn’t talk to Magnus quite yet about. It was actually a surprise for the Warlock and he was determined not to ruin it. He was both excited and anxious.

While waiting on a response from both women, the therapist came out with a calm smile that had Alec’s insides rolling. “Hello, Alec.”

His son still had ten minutes left. Why was the man coming to get him? “Hello, Dr. Eskire. Is everything alright?” It’d been a few sessions since Rafe required Alec to be in the office with him. Protective father mode had been activated.

“Yes, everything is fine. He is making progress and after talking with him I believe it is time you and him talked about _why_ he has been acting out with you. I myself do not know all the details, but I believe it would benefit both of you to talk. He has given me permission to have you come in.” Nodding his head, Alec put his phone away and followed the doctor. Upon seeing his son Alec felt like maybe he wasn’t actually all that welcomed in. “Rafe, your father is here.” The little boy curled into himself more without looking at his father. 

Motioning for Alec to sit next to Rafe, Dr. Eskire took his seat. “Rafe, we were just talking about why you’ve been intentionally ignoring or being mean to your dad. Are you still okay with him being here while we talk about it?” With a second of hesitation, the little Shadowhunter nodded his head. “Okay. At any time you want him to leave, I can escort him out. It’s all up to you. This office is a safe place for you. Are you ready to talk about it?” Rafe gave a small nod but still wouldn’t look at anyone. “Would it be alright if I catch your dad up a little before we start? Would that be okay with you?” Again the boy nodded. “Very good. Mr Lightwood,” The man turned his attention to Alec, “Over the last few months on and off, we have talked about his tantrums and ignoring you. He’s been very… secretive about it, but has opened up quite a bit. From what I am understanding, Rafe feels like he is getting mixed signals from you,” The doctor’s eyes slid to the little boy that looked smaller than normal, “Am I correct, Rafe? Do you feel like you are getting mixed signals from your father? Would you like to tell him why?”

“No.” The boy pouted and crossed his arms.

Alec was taken back at the ferocity of the declaration while Dr. Eskire seemed to have known this would be the boy’s answer. “No?” The man asked.

“No!” The word was louder and both older men could see the agitation start to build in the young boy’s body. 

“Do you want to tell us why you don’t?” Dr Eskire asked. Without saying a word, Rafe shot up and started aggressively pacing. Following how the doctor was handling what Rafe was doing, Alec watched helplessly at the well known signs of one of his son’s meltdowns. It most likely wouldn’t be long before the boy started wailing. After a moment or two of Rafe moving like a trapped animal, the doctor asked, “Do you want me to ask your dad to leave?”

At the mention of Alec, Rafe stopped. Large tears started dripping from the boy’s face as he cried, “No!” He plopped down where he was. Bringing his legs up to his chest, Rafe wrapped his arms around his knees and started sobbing into them. Alec’s heart broke seeing his son completely broken down. He looked helplessly at the doctor still trying to follow his lead even though every fiber of his being _**told**_ him to go to his son.

“What’s wrong, Rafe? Would you like to tell us?” By the Angel, Alec hoped his son told them what was wrong. All he wanted to do was help and currently he was as useful as a dead battery.

Rafe continued to hide in his arms to the point Dr. Eskire was about to repeat the question when the boy cried, “Daddy’s going give me way!”

Alec tensed in shock at the declaration. Where did Rafe get that idea? “Rafe?” The Nephilim called, “What are you-”

With a red blotchy face and tears falling in rivets, the boy accused, “Y-y-you told na-na-nana th-they’d tak-ke me!”

Oh. Oh shit. He’d heard or at least in part, his conversation with his mother. Alec felt like an awful father. He really fucked up. “Oh, Rafael.” His voice was small and filled with pain. Getting up, Alec slowly approached his son and knelt near him. Not yet touching until Rafe gave permission. “Sweetheart, that’s… that’s not-”

“You told nana they’d take me!” The pain, anger, and accusation made Rafe’s face turn a purple shade that concerned Alec even further.

Alright, Alec was failing at this whole father thing. Instead of World’s Best Dad mug he deserved Awful Dad of the Year one. Taking a breath, Alec said, “Rafe, is it alright if I tell you what I was talking to nana about?”

“I heard!” The acid in the boy’s voice felt as though it could burn away Alec’s skin.

“I know you heard part of it, but I need to tell you everything. Can I?” For a few seconds Alec thought Rafe was going to say no, but the boy gave a small nod holding himself tighter. “Do you know who _they_ are, Rafe?” The boy shook his head as he castes his eyes down. “Do you remember when Magnus and I first met you?” The boy nodded while narrowing his eyes. What did that have to do with anything? “When we were in Argentina, where you’re from, both Magnus and I realized early on who or more specifically what you are. Magnus could feel it in you, while the little stone I gave you confirmed it. We had every intention of telling you, but we wanted to wait until you were settled. Until you felt safe with us. Until you felt comfortable around not only me and Magnus, but also my family and the other Downworlders. 

“You must understand Rafe, you were so scared. You barely let Magnus touch you and you had bonded with him. We didn’t want to scare you further. We wanted you to know that you weren’t only safe with us, but that we would never let anything or anyone hurt you.”

New tears started falling from the little boy’s eyes, “But you told nana-”

“I know. I know what you heard, buddy.” Alec’s voice was soothing and he opened his arms. He waited patiently for Rafe to decide what he wanted to do. There was a few second pause before Rafe crawled over and cuddled in the safety of his dad’s arms. Holding him close, Alec continued, “What Magnus felt and the stone confirmed was that you Rafael, are like me and nana, Aunt Izzy, Uncle Jace, Uncle Max, and Aunt Clary.” Looking down and tucking a curl behind Rafe’s ear, the older man said, “You are a Nephilim; a Shadowhunter.” Rafe looked at him startled, “When I was talking with nana, we were talking about what it meant for you to be my son. I am no longer a Shadowhunter. You being my son… The Clave would not approve because I have been shunned by their society.” He paused. When he spoke again, his voice was soft, “They’d want to take you away and have a Shadowhunter family take you in and adopt you.”

Panic erupted on Rafe’s face as he cried out, “No!”

“Shh, Darling. Shh,” Alec hugged his son to him and rubbed the boy’s back, “We would never let that happen. You are my son. I would never let them take you from me.” Pulling Rafe away from him just enough to look the boy in his eyes, “I will always come for you Rafe. Should the Clave think it’s a good idea to take you, I will alway find you. Magnus, the Downworlders, my family, and I would destroy the Clave before we let them take you without your consent. We would burn the world down for you, Maxie, Madzie, and Ionna. We will always protect you, okay?”

“Daddy.” Rafe threw himself back into Alec’s embrace and sobbed into his shirt.

“It’s okay, Rafe. You’re safe. I won’t let anything happen to you.” After some time passed where Alec silently comforted Rafe, he continued, “We were going to tell you when you were a little older and let you decide. When a Nephilim leaves Shadowhunter society and they have kids, those children are given a choice once they reach the age of 10. Three or four times until the age of 18, a Clave representative will visit and ask the child if they wish to join the Clave. The child has every right to say no and live their life as a mundane. They may also choose to say yes and become a demon hunter and a protector. It is solely their choice. However, if they say yes they must leave their family behind.”

Burrowing closer, Rafe muttered, “You see nana and Aunty Izzy and Uncle Jace and Uncle Max.”

“If they’re caught, they can be in a lot of trouble for seeing me. They would also risk everything to keep you safe if the Clave tried to do anything to separate you from me and Magnus.” He leaned his cheek on his son’s head and tried to keep his heartbeat steady, “I love you, Rafael. Unless you want to leave to become a Shadowhunter, I won’t let anyone take you away. Magnus has, multiple times, said we could run away to an island so the Clave can’t reach us. You’re safe, Rafe. I’m not giving you away to anyone. You’re my son and Maxie’s brother. You’re safe, baby. You’re safe.”

There was a lull of quiet as Alec comforted his son and Rafe tried to take in everything. Before long Alec was startled when Rafe cried, “I’m sorry!” The boy’s body shook as he sobbed once more.

Hugging his son tighter without crushing him, Alec asked, “For what, buddy?”

“I was mean to you.” Little hands gripped their father’s shirt almost to the point of ripping it, “I said you weren’t my daddy.”

“Oh, Rafe.” Alec rocked the boy comfortingly, “It’s okay, buddy. It’s okay. Shh.” They stayed in the office for a few more minutes before Alec picked his son up. “Sorry for going over time, Dr Eskine.”

As always the man smiled, “It is nothing. Rafe and you needed to work through this and I am more than happy to help. I’m pleased the two of you talked about what was causing the rift between the two of you.” 

“Me too.” Shaking the doctor’s hand, the Nephilim said, “Thank you. For everything. We’ll see you in two weeks.”

“Take care. Goodbye, Rafe.” The doctor waved his fingers at the nearly passed out boy. Rafe slurred something along the lines of bye before dropping into an exhausted nap. With a final wave, Alec headed out of the office and waved down a taxi. 

By the time they made it to the loft, Alec was also on the verge of napping in the taxi. Passing over his dues, the father picked his son up and headed up to his boyfriend’s apartment. Normally he would have kicked off his shoes before entering, but he didn’t want to disturb Rafe. Instead he walked straight to the room the boys use when they stay the night and tucked him in. Kissing his son’s head, Alec left the little nightlight on before quietly shutting the door. Once the door was shut, he went in search of his Warlock. 

The moment he stepped into the apothecary, Magnus lit up. “Alexander, Darling.” He all but glided over before pulling the younger man into a kiss.

Alec hummed into the kiss and all the tension he had not known he was holding bled away. “Hello, Magnus.”

“How was Rafe’s session?” Magnus let Alec curl around him and gently swayed them back and forth.

“Emotional, but good.” There was a moment’s pause before he finished with, “We talked about why Rafe has been through tantrums and lashing out at me.” Magnus made a surprised noise but didn’t interrupt, “He heard me and mom talk about the Clave taking him away.”

“What!” Magnus gasped.

“He thought we were going to let _them_ , he didn’t know who the them were, but he thought we’d let them take him… I told him almost everything. He knows he’s a Nephilim and that if the Clave knew what he was they’d want to take him away from us.” Magnus made a wounded sound that had Alec tighten his hold on the man, “I reassured him we’d never let that happen. None of us would. He was safe with us and we’d always protect him.”

Closing his eyes, Magnus asked, “How did he take the reveal?”

“I don’t think him being a Nephilim has sunk in yet. I think he’s focused more on that we aren’t getting rid of him, that we want him and we’ll protect him.” The pair had stopped swaying. They stood still as they soaked in each other’s presence.

“I’d whisk him away to an island the Clave can't touch before I’d let them take him from us.” the conviction in theWarlock’s voice had Alec smiling.

“I know.” Alec chuckled, “I even told him that.”

“Good.” Magnus looked up into Alec’s eyes and smiled. Then he reached up to caress the Nephilim’s cheek, “The Clave will never lay a hand on him as long as he doesn’t want to go with them.” Their moment was broken by a small shrill of an alarm informing Magnus one of his potions was ready. With a groan, the older man leaned up and kissed his boyfriend, “Now, I have to finish a few potions. Go take a nap and I’ll wake you in about an hour so we can make Rafe his favorite dinner.”

Alec hummed and kissed Magnus one more time, “And by we you mean me.”

“I am a Warlock Alexander, not a chief. Go before I ruin my potion because I can’t keep my hands off you.” The mischief in the cat eyes Alec adored so much informed the younger man his boyfriend wasn’t lying.

“Alright,” Alec pulled away, “But if that were to happen we’d move somewhere else. I refuse to have sex with you in your apothecary.”

“Where’s your sense of adventure?” Magnus cackled.

“Newt eyes Magnus! I am not letting dead newt eyes watch me make you come apart.” The brunette laughed as he pointed, “And whatever other ingredients you have that are creepy. Not again!” The rich laugh of his boyfriend followed Alec to the bedroom where he slipped off his boots and proceeded to pass out for the next hour.


	11. Pride

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So not my normal posting day, but this is a special chapter that deserves to be posted in June. I hope you enjoy and thank you for hanging with me. I've been interviewing so fingers crossed!
> 
> Cheers, Angels! Have a great week.

Standing outside an unassuming brick building, Alec had to wonder if he had come to the right place. It didn’t look like much. If anything, the building looked like a condemned apartment complex. However, this was the address the photographer had given through her email and Gwen had confirmed so it must be right. If anything, he had two knives on him and a very protective boyfriend that probably had spider senses about him by now. Alec was safe should anything go awry. Shaking his head, he cleared all the bad that could happen inside the building and pushed the door open. 

Ascending three floors, the young man blinked in surprise not at the open space that greeted him, but the few dozen people that milled about in various stages of being dressed. Music blared through the space that was maybe a little loud for him. His eyes scanned the room and finally landed on the sign in table. The moment he stepped up a man with a mohawk colored like the pride flag grinned at him. “Hey man. Welcome. I’m Ty, this is Clare,” He gestured to the older woman next him. She had silver hair with streaks of purple and pink through it, “We’re the sign in crew and going to be throwing paint at you. If you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask us or really anyone in here.” The smile he gave was big and relaxed, his eyes gleamed with excitement, “Name please.”

“I’m Alex Li-Trueblood. It’s nice to meet you.” He nodded at the pair. They were friendly or at least Ty was, Clare was currently busy helping someone else.

With a grin Ty said, “You too. Alright, let’s see,” He skimmed his clipboard and nodded, “Alright, you are gay, correct?” Alec nodded, “Solid, me too. Welcome my brother.” He leaned over and rifled through a box with white tank tops, “Here is your uniform for today.” He passed over the white tank and a pair of white cotton lounge pants. “We had to order these special for you and I can understand why. Dancer?”

Frowning, Alec replied, “No?”

“Damn, would have made a great one with those long legs. Anyway,” He passed the clothes over, “If you don’t care you can change out in the open, we’re free like that, just no pictures because no. If not the changing rooms slash bathrooms are over there,” He pointed to the far right wall, “My boyfriend Davey is at the corner table doing face paint if you want the pride flag on your cheek or whatever flag you want. Gwen, Kev, Trin, and a few others are painting nails. Water and a few snacks are somewhere around here and we’ll be starting in about a half hour or so. Welcome Alex.” 

“Thanks.” He shook the man’s hand before wandering off towards the changing rooms. He needed a minute to himself before he was surrounded by so many people. Slipping in the first open one, Alec stripped off his shirt and looked down at the tank top he now held. For the first time he noticed that it actually had writing on it. The front had the words: **Make it stop. Let this end. This life chose me, I’m not lost in sin.** Flipping it over he read: **But proud I stand. Of who I am. And I plan to go on living. -Rise Against.** The sentences were staggered. Although he liked what Rise Against had to say, he had no idea who or what they were. Still it felt befitting to have that on his shirt. 

Pulling the shirt over his head, Alec quickly stripped off his pants and slid the cotton pants on. They were surprisingly comfortable. He was almost tempted to steal them afterwards to wear around the house or at Magnus’s. Once dressed, he stepped out and wandered over to where he heard Gwen was. Well if it was his Gwen. He was fully aware other people could be named Gwen. Stashing his clothes off to the side he made his way to the table full of people. Unsurprisingly he did find his Gwen painting a woman’s fingers in pink, blue, and white. Alec could see Gwen in her element; surrounded by like minded people. He couldn't help but smile.

Roughly five or so minutes after he arrived at the table to watch, Gwen finally looked up and smiled, “Alex! You made it! Give me a minute.” She finished the woman’s nails, smiled at her, and then got up to hug him. “I was beginning to think you wouldn't show.”

“Come now, when have I ever intentionally missed a shoot I said I’d go to?” Alec smiled as he hugged his friend back. “How’ve you been?”

Pulling back she replied, “Great. Got to see my sister last weekend and God I miss her. Come on,” She pulled him to a chair and shoved him in it, “I’m going to do your nails.”

Blanching, Alec said, “Gwen, I ah I don’t-”

Rolling her eyes, she started collecting a few bottles, “I’ll do one. Mia came up with the idea to paint her nails in the color of her significant other's flag. You know show solidarity and give a shout-out to her love.” She looked up and grinned, “I won’t go crazy. Give me your left hand. Now just relax and let me work.”

“It’s not like I can say no.” Alec quipped.

“Well, you _could_.” Gwen grinned as a clear coat was applied to his ring finger.

This time it was Alec’s turn to roll his eyes, “I could and then you’d tell Magnus that I was embarrassed of him or something ridiculous like that.”

“Who’s Magnus?” A man to Alec’s right asked. He was getting a purple, grey, black, and white flag applied to his cheek.

Before Alec could reply, Gwen giddily replied, “A god of a man.” Alec snorted, “I mean I’m 100% a lesbian but damn, Magnus is smoking. They are my otp of gay couples. Well, Magnus is Bi, but these two put people to shame.”

“Picture or it didn’t happen.” Another man snickered behind Gwen.

“You’re on.” She grinned like a mad woman. The smile reminded Alec of his sister. It was kind of creepy. He watched as she tapped her phone to her lips. “Do I give you beautiful everyday or hot damn it should be illegal for two beautiful men to be dressed in that?”

“Both.” The group surrounding the table replied immediately.

With a snort she laughed, “Of course. What was I thinking? To deprive any of you the gift that God gave the word by creating these two men.” 

“You’ve been hanging out with Izzy too much.” Alec commented although it fell on deaf ears. He blew on his finger having seen Magnus do it to his wet nails dozens of times.

Going through her phone she finally pulled one up. Alec leaned forward to see what one she chose. Apparently it was from the modeling agency holiday party. They really did look good. Alec needed to find more reasons to get Magnus to wear tuxes.

The group fell into a silence before the man to Alec’s right whistled, “Damn, you two are fucking gorgeous. Like what the hell. Where did you find this fine specimen of a man?”

_He had information we needed on the crazed Circle leader we thought was dead and who was trying to destroy the Shadow World. I saved him from getting gutted by a Circle member. It was like at first sight._ Alec replied with, “He was a friend of my brother’s girlfriend. Well, she was his girlfriend at the time, but whatever.”

“Can she introduce me to someone this good looking?” The group around them chuckled.

As Gwen applied a purple color, she said, “Please, Alex’s whole family is gorgeous. You should see _them_. It’s just not fair.” Once the color was applied she went back to her phone and pulled up a candid photo of Alec and Magnus playing with the boys. “And these two cherubs are Alex’s sons. Also way too cute to be true.”

Again the group leaned in to look at the photo. “They’re precious! How old are they? What are their names?”

Normally Alec wasn’t a fan of people he didn’t know seeing pictures of the boys (cue flashbacks of them being kidnapped), but how could he not talk about them? They were freaking adorable even when he sometimes wanted to feed them to a demon. “Rafe is six and Maxie will be turning two in July.” He pointed to Rafe and Maxie respectively. He needed to ask Gwen to send him the picture. It really was a great one.

Gwen had just finished the clear topcoat when the models were called to attention. The shoot would go as follows: first they would take a group picture with everyone in their white attire. A few nice ones and then they could goof around; have fun. Then they would go through each group individually and after each person in the group went they would all pose together. Washable paint would be thrown at them in their pride colors and they could pose however they wanted. Have fun, that’s what the day was about. Once everyone had gone they would take another group photo with them covered in their colors. It was going to be a long day, but it would be fun. If anyone had to leave by a certain time to please let a volunteer staff member know and they’d fit them in earlier if they needed. Once they were released, Alec went to talk with Ty about having two sons that might require him to take a call or leave early. He planned to stay for all of the shoot, but he wasn’t sure he would be able to. Ty gave a thumbs up and looked at the time table. With a nod the man grinned that Alec should be able to make it through most of it. He just might not be in the final group picture. With a thanks, the Nephilim departed to find his friend again.

The shoot started to move at a semi fast pace after the meeting. A few minutes after they were dismissed they were called together for the first group pictures. The first dozen or so were on the nicer side. The group smiled and had their arms around each other. A beautiful picture of solidarity. But once they were given free reign, chaos ensued. It was fun and laughter filled the space. Once the photographer was satisfied, she dismissed them to set up for the individual pictures.

Pulling away, Alec checked his phone to find a text from Magnus. It was a picture of him and the boys giving goofy faces. He was a little sad he couldn’t be there with them. Calling Gwen over, he took a picture of them and sent it back.

“What was that for? You rarely take selfies.” Gwen started braiding her hair as she waited for her turn.

Zipping his phone back in his backpack, Alec replied, “Magnus sent me one of him with the boys so I sent him one.”

With wide eyes, Gwen cried, “What? I wanna see!”

“Next time I take it out.” He was already walking away from it.

“Noooo.” She groaned, “But I wanna see your hott boyfriend and your adorable children.”

“Still creepy, Gwen.” Alec snorted.

“I live precariously through you. Sue me.” She took his hand and inspected her work, “By the way, I love the lyrics on your shirt. One of my favorite songs.”

“Oh. Rise Against is a band?”

“Yes. A really good band. I’ll introduce them to you next time I come over. By the way when are we having Ladies night again? I miss them.” Gwen pouted.

Alec cocked his head, “Hopefully soon. Everyone’s been busy, especially with the wedding in a few months. And it’s been a bit crazy at the apartment so…” Rafe had finally settled down and was now only having his normal amount of meltdowns instead of apparently his ‘my-dad-is-going-to-give-me-away’ ones. He’s glad they finally were able to clear the air and talk about what had been troubling the boy.

Sometime later, Alec was called up. He walked over to find a tarp already splattered with paint, two assistants grinning maniacally, and the friendly photographer. While the assistants gathered some more paint, the photographer smiled, “Alex, right?” He nodded, “Nice to meet you, I’m Alice. I’m in charge and will be taking the photos today. My two assistants Ty and Rebecca will be throwing paint at you while you pose. Do whatever feels comfortable. Be goofy, serious, whatever. I’ll direct you a bit, but mostly this is all about you and expressing who you are. Do you have any questions for me?”

Alec was quiet a minute but ended up shaking his head, “No.” He replied.

“Excellent. When you’re ready you can head onto the drop and we’ll begin.” The smile put Alec at ease until he stepped onto the paint splattered tarp and realized he had no idea what to do. He may be a model but usually he just had to adopt his Magnus persona and he was good. This was different. He wasn’t comfortable in front of the camera. “You alright?” Alice asked, dropping her camera.

“Ah,” He ran his fingers through his hair, “I don’t really know what to do.”

“Accept that you are going to get hit many times with paint.” The familiar voice of Ty called before Alec was hit with cold red paint. He muffled a curse before he was hit with orange. As he glared at the two grinning assistants he missed the sound of a camera’s shutter going off. 

It wasn’t long before Gwen skipped over and groaned at how awkward her friend was being, “Oh my God, Alex! You’re a model. You do this for a living.”

Crossing his arms to look at her with a sarcastic smile he replied, “Yes, but that is to sell a product. I am not selling shit. I have to be me,” He threw his arms out, “And me does not like the camera.” Thus the banter with Gwen continued capturing the many sides of Alec. From sarcastically grinning to a carefree laugh. The last few shots had Alec looking up in wonder, mouth slightly open as the song on his shirt started to play. 

Satisfied with what she got, Alice grinned happily at her model, “Excellent work. You are free until the group picture. Rebecca has booties for you so you don’t track paint all over the floor. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Oh, ah, thank you.” He smiled back before sliding on the gauze like shoes. Once Gwen was at his side they started towards the table with the water and snacks. “Thanks for talking to me.”

“No problem. If it wasn’t for the fact that I haven't been painted yet, I would have just joined you. As your modeling wife, I know how uncomfortable you are in front of the camera. You couldn’t adopt your Magnus persona to get through the shoot. Well you did for a few, but even then the poses were more you looking sexy than doing the WWMD.” They continued hanging out with the rest of the models until Gwen departed for her own shoot. Alec found out that Kylie was married to Bridgette. They were currently traveling the world and when they heard about the shoot they decided they needed to be a part of it. Tony had just exited a relationship with a douchebag that wanted to shove him back in the closet. The group listening all muttered or made some noise of disgust. No one wanted to go back in. Tony said he was okay with it for a little while, knowing full well how hard it was to come out, but with no sign of his SO ever wanting to come out about their relationship and generally being a douchewanker, the man left and barely looked back. Alec liked sitting back and listening to everyone’s story.

As the hours passed, Alec would hang out with the group and then disappear for a little while to text with Magnus. The shoot was a long one. One of the longest he’d ever done and he was beginning to miss his boyfriend and sons. Finally around five, Alice called everyone together for one final session. Like before they took a few serious pictures before they were allowed to goof off. At one point Alec ended up with Gwen on his shoulders laughing up at her antics. Although the day had been fun, Alec was more than ready to go home. Once they were released with a thank you and to look out for the photos, Alec quickly changed and walked with Gwen to the station. Parting ways, Alec sighed in relief the moment he walked into his apartment.

It was the first week in June when Petra stopped in her tracks and stared up at a billboard. For a moment she couldn’t believe her eyes. Then she scrambled for her phone and did her best to zoom in on the image before it changed. _Holy shit._

Her eyes were glued to the image for a few seconds before she found the two appropriate group chats and sent it. The words **Oh my God!!!!!!** attached to the image. Within seconds her phone started blowing up as her friends and Alec’s family rapidly responded to the image.

The picture, although not the best quality, was of Alec from the day he did the Pride photoshoot. He was standing tall in a relaxed pose with his thumbs hooked in the waistband of his pants. His shirt, skin, and pants were strained red, orange, yellow, and violet. A small knowing smile had one side of his lips turned up. The wording on his shirt stood out boldly while green and blue paint flared out and slightly forward looking as if they were two wings. A gay protective angel the Clave would just _love_ if they ever came across the image. The picture itself was breathtaking, not that Petra or really anyone was surprised. The bottom right corner read: ALEX TRUEBLOOD, NY FATHER,BOYFRIEND,BROTHER,MODEL. 

A few hours after Petra’s text, Alec, Magnus, and the boys were walking through New York when they spotted a billboard with the Pride campaign on it. More accurately, Rafe had been the one who stopped them and pointed up. “Daddy.” The two adults looked up to see another still image of Alec covered in rainbow paint laughing. “Can we play with paint?”

The hope in the boy’s eyes had Alec shaking his head fondly, “Not today. We’re having lunch with grandma and Uncle Max.” The little boy pouted but agreed and the quartet went on their way to have lunch. 

Later that night when Maxie and Rafe were tucked in their beds and Magnus wrapped his arms around his boyfriend, the older Warlock whispered, “Happy Pride month, my Darling. I’m so proud of you.” He kissed the scruffy cheek of his lover.

Snuggling in closer, Alec replied, “Happy Pride month, Mio Amato.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gwen's top has on the front: And I know that I deserve your love/ There's nothing I'm not worthy of /When the sharpest words wanna cut me down. Back: I'm gonna send a flood, gonna drown them out/ This is brave, this is bruised/ This is who I'm meant to be, this is me -Keala Settle


	12. Vacation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter. I had a lot of fun writing it even if at one point I messaged my partner in crime something along the lines of ah crap I forgot I had to write this too. 
> 
> As I may have said before the last chapters will be a little faster paced with bigger time skips. Thank you for staying with me and this story. I greatly appreciate it and love hearing from you. Have a great week, Angels. Cheers!

In mid August Alec found himself relaxing on some beach in Italy. For the first time in years, or perhaps ever if he’s kind of being honest, he had the time and ability to actually relax. His sons were currently spending two weeks with Cat (She actually took time off her busy work schedule) and Madzie. Petra promised to also keep them busy and have lots of play dates to give Cat some time to herself. Apparently being a parent/guardian to three children, two of whom were warlocks, was exhausting. Who knew?

With the kids taken care of and promises of phone calls every day, Alec and Magnus had gone on their first real vacation together. The Nephilim was finding it quite enjoyable. He loved spending a few days in a foreign country he’d never been to and being able to actually enjoy the culture. All he could do was smile as Magnus told him stories about long ago adventures and the nuances of each culture. The food was wonderful, the people generally welcoming, and overall Alec was actually able to enjoy his time away with only his boyfriend as his companion. Currently they’d been to Ireland, Sweden, Spain, and were now spending the next two days in Italy. Nonno and Nonna had given them recommendations to which they gladly took. 

While they enjoyed lounging on the beach, Alec rolled over onto his stomach to look at his boyfriend. The man was definitely a sight to behold. It wasn’t long before a smirk spread across Magnus’s lips and hummed. “You’re beautiful.” Alec commented. His eyes slowly taking in the Warlock's golden skin.

“Thank you, Darling.” He opened one eye and gave a dirty smile, “And you are gorgeous.” Then he frowned as he reached out to trace Alec’s side. “When did you get this?”

Not having to look to know exactly what _this_ was, the younger man caught ringless fingers in his hand, “A little while ago.”

“Please tell me you didn’t take Rafe with you.” Magnus’s disapproving face ruined by the slight upturn of his lips.

Alec let out a laugh, “You mean a child shouldn’t be allowed in a tattoo parlor when their dad is getting a tattoo?” He easily dodged Magnus’s hand that tried to push him. Easily capturing it, Alec gracefully turned over while pulling Magnus to him. The other man curled around him and rested his head on the Nephilim’s chest. “No, but he knew I was getting it. It’s his hand writing.”

**_Te Amo_** was written boldly in childish writing on his left side across the fourth rib. It had been one of the more painful tattoos he’d gotten, but in the end worth it. Rafe had stared in wonder for a small eternity before he burst into tears and told his father how much he loved him. Now the small boy traced the letters absently when he curled up into Alec’s side. It always melted the older Nephilim’s heart. By the Angel he loved his son more than anything.

Picking his head up to look at Alec, Magnus sighed and whispered, “You are a wonderful father, Alexander. Truly wonderful.” The younger man’s cheeks darkened as he mumbled in embarrassment. The Warlock shushed him, “Take the compliment, Darling. It is the truest thing in the world.”

They spent a few more hours on the beach before wandering back to their villa to wash up and get dressed for supper. The dinner was of course marvelous with just enough wine to warm them up as they finally ventured outside. The nightlife was alive as music played through the streets and people danced and laughed. They strolled through the intermittent crowds taking in the festivities. It was while they walked the beach from earlier that Alec finally brought up what he had been thinking about for a while.  
With soft music in the background and the sea crashing on the sand, Alec said, “Magnus. I think I want to go to school.” 

When the Warlock looked up in mild surprise, he found his boyfriend still looking forward with a pensive look. “Oh?”

“I’ve been thinking and,” He paused for a few seconds trying to decipher his thoughts, “I think I want to try it.”

“Do you have something in mind?” Magnus was curious as to what brought this on. Although it was new for him, he had a feeling Alec had been thinking about school for months.

To confirm his suspicions, the younger man nodded, “I think I want to be a teacher. After helping the girls with their school work and teaching Rafe English and Italian, I… I realized I enjoy that. Helping others learn a new language. I don’t want to be a model forever. It was something I stumbled upon and it just happened to work well with me raising Maxie. Now that I have everyone and he’s older, I don’t really need to keep doing it. I don’t have a passion for it, but I think teaching could be something I'd have a passion for.”

Going on his tiptoes, Magnus kissed Alec’s cheek, “I think you’d make a wonderful teacher, Alexander.”

“Really?” Alec’s doubt finally shining through.

“Yes, Darling. You were patient with Ash and Tara when you were helping them with their foreign language requirements and I can tell you enjoy teaching Rafe new languages. I think it is a wonderful idea.” Then he leaned closer and deepened his voice, “Even if I will miss seeing you dressed up or in some cases dressed very much down.”

“Magnus!” Alec cried as his face turned red.

“What? Sometimes work gets _very_ boring.” The Warlock laughed as his boyfriend groaned into the side of his neck. “But in all seriousness, I think you should do it. Have you started looking?”

“Yes.” The Nephilim mumbled still hiding, “Ash and Petra have been helping me. I’m trying to decide if online or in class would be better and what school would be cheaper but have a good program. It’s a little overwhelming.”

“We’ll take it one step at a time. I’m assuming first you’ll have to get your Bachelor’s degree.” The pair stopped in their wandering to not only enjoy the sea at night, but to have the conversation. Magnus pulled Alec down and plopped him between his legs so he could hold him close. He felt his boyfriend relax into the embrace.

“Yeah. Bachelor’s degree first since I’ve never been to college. It appears I have to go to an actual university for a BA in Foreign Language so that’ll be a bit more expensive.” He sighed thinking about money. Although he was doing fine now, the days where he had maybe $10 to his name still haunted him.

Alec was brought out of his head when Magnus kissed him, “Don’t worry about money, Alexander. There are aids available and if need be I can help. Don’t,” He silenced Alec with a kiss when the younger man tried to protest, “Your education is important, there is no need for you to be in thousands of dollars in debt if you don’t need to be. It’ll be nice to put my money towards something other than materialistic things.”

“I’ll pay you back.” Alec offered with a mumble.

Kissing the top of the brunette’s head, Magnus smiled, “If you want to, but there is no need. Tell me more about your plans.” So Alec did. He had some of the bigger picture planned out. Go to a four year college, graduate with a BA in Foreign Language, get his master’s degree, and graduate. Once he had his master’s he was still deciding if he wanted to apply for a community college position so he could teach while getting his doctorate and gain experience or focus solely on his doctorate, get it done hopefully faster, and then graduate so he could teach at a university. He figured he’d cross that bridge when he got to it. He also wasn’t sure if he wanted to keep modeling while going to school. Working would mean still making money so he didn’t have to rely on his savings and Magnus (which he liked the idea of best). However, if he quit and focused solely on school, he could be a full time student and take extra classes during the winter and summer breaks. Finishing his degree faster would be ideal. He had time to decide though, which did take some of the stress off his shoulders. 

Magnus kissed Alec and told him how proud he was once they stood up to continue their walk back towards the villa. The more he talked about going to school with Magnus, Alec became more confident and happy with his decision.

After Italy they moved on further east. They bounced around from country to country sometimes spending half a day in a town that ‘Alec just had to see!’ The younger man was more than happy to follow where Magnus led. By the time they only had three days left in their vacation, the pair found themselves in Indonesia. Magnus had debated whether or not he had wanted to bring Alec to his homeland, but eventually decided upon it. He wanted to show the love of his life where he came from. Although different, the country still called to him. The first day they spent time just wandering around Yogyakarta. It was a wonder for Alec to watch Magnus talking to him in English and then suddenly switch to Indonesian to speak with a local. The day had Alec falling more in love with the man which was a pretty impressive feat considering he was in this relationship until Magnus decided he wanted out. While he was aware Magnus was also in it for the long run, a small part of him still was weary about the far future when Alec would be old and a burden. Most days him growing old wasn’t a big deal, but on occasion (especially when his depression hit him hard) being a mortal man had him second guessing things. It was a topic his therapist and him have talked about once or twice.

The following morning, Magnus was a bundle of nerves. Alec could tell he was equally excited and anxious about whatever he had planned for them to do. Letting Magnus take his time in actually informing Alec what they were doing, Alec decided a morning of luxury and care was in order. After having a wonderful breakfast, Alec hustled them into a bath where they relaxed for a while before the Nephilim washed his boyfriend’s hair. By the time they got out, dried off, changed, and were ready to go, Magnus had settled down a bit.

Taking a deep breath, Magnus turned to Alec, “I want to take you to Jakarta.” Alec nodded and waited, “It… It’s where I was born. Well, sort of. It wasn’t called Jakarta back then, but I want to take you there.”

Stepping up and taking Magnus’s hand, Alec smiled, “I would love to see it.”

“Okay. Okay, good.” He breathed out taking comfort when Alec leaned his forehead against his. “Ready?” When Alec nods, Magnus pulled away to create the portal. Taking his boyfriend’s hand, he stepped through ending up in the bustling city of Jakarta. For the first half of the day the pair walked around and enjoyed what the city had to offer. The food was wonderful and by the time Magnus decided it was time to head out of the city, Alec wasn’t sure he’d want dinner that night. 

As concrete and skyscrapers gave way to green landscape, Alec could almost physically see the tension build inside Magnus. He knew it would be hard for the Warlock to return home, he only didn’t realize how hard it would be. Finally the pair stopped where they could oversee the natural green and liveliness of the land. Down below Alec could see people working the land.

“This was my life.” Magnus started suddenly causing Alec to look over at him, “I didn’t grow up in the lifestyle I live now. I had a humble beginning. I was born to a half Dutch and Indonesian woman and a Dutch man. I grew up for nearly the first decade of my life on a farm.” His eyes shifted to Alec with a self-deprecating smile gracing his lips. “Can you believe me to be a farmer’s son?”

Alec looked out over the farms working before returning his eyes to Magnus, “I have seen you romp around in the mud with the boys. Although chipping your nailpolish? That might be pushing it.” To his satisfaction, Magnus let out a laugh that took some of the edge off.

“Very true. But before I knew what nail polish was, I was but a simple country boy.” His eyes saddened making Alec’s heart hurt, “I was loved by my parents and I enjoyed my life. Although my step-father was strict, I had quite a bit of freedom. I ran around and played like any child. All was peaceful.” There was a pregnant pause that Alec knew signaled the end of Magnus’s carefree childhood, “I was nine when my demon mark made itself known. It was that moment my parents knew I was a child of a demon. My parents… my mother tried. She really tried, but I could tell she feared me. Both of them did... You know the rest.

“I have a strong love-hate relationship with Jakarta.” Magnus felt arms wrap around him. He leaned into the comforting touch, “Pre-demon mark, I loved it here. I only have good memories of my time growing up. I grew up loved. But it’s all overshadowed by my mother’s su-... by her death and what came after. Very few know what actually happened. What my life was before I was _Magnus Bane_ ” He fell silent, unable to say more.

Kissing Magnus’s temple, Alec said, “Thank you for sharing that with me, I am honored that you told me. I know it was hard.”

For some time the couple stayed in the embrace and looked out over the land. All that could be heard was the gentle wind blowing through the vegetation, native creatures calling to each other, and occasionally the farmers talking. Overall, it was a soothing environment that allowed for both men to come to terms with what Magnus had shared. Eventually, as the sun started to dip lower in the sky, Magnus pulled away. Once again he appeared to steel himself. “There was another reason I brought you here.” Before Alec could question, his eyes widened as Magnus dropped to one knee, “Alexander Gideon Lightwood, you are the love of my life. I have lived many lifetimes and you probably know better than almost anyone that it wasn’t always fun and games. I’ve had heartbreaks that I never thought I’d recover from. Lost many I have loved, but I would do it all again if it meant meeting and falling in love with you. Even with all the languages I know, I find it nearly impossible to describe how much I love and adore you and the boys. I’ll do my best everyday to show you. I know sometimes that nasty voice in your head would disagree with this, but Alexander, my love, I need you in my life and want to spend every minute I have with you if you'll have me. Alexander Gideon Lightwood, will you marry me?”

For a second Alec didn’t say or do anything, too shocked at seeing Magnus down on one knee. What Magnus had said had left him speechless. Then Alec started laughing because how couldn’t he? Of course he and Magnus had both decided to propose on the first vacation they’ve ever spent alone together. Especially one that led them here to Magnus’s homeland. 

Alec almost felt bad for laughing. The second the small laugh escaped his lips he watched as Magnus’s smile dropped and he attempted to curl in on himself. “No, mio amato. I’m sorry,” He dropped to knees in front of his boyfriend (soon to be fiance) and cupped Magnus’s face in his hands, “I promise I’m not laughing at you or your beautiful proposal.” He took in a deep breath because the time had come. Wiping a few stray tears away, Alec began, “Magnus, kamu adalah cinta dalam hidupku.” He watched as Magnus’s eyes not only widened, but for a second dropped their glamour, “Anda telah membantu saya tumbuh dan jujur pada diri sendiri. Kamu telah mencintaiku bahkan ketika aku hampir tidak bisa berdiri sendiri. Lebih penting lagi, Anda telah mencintai anak-anak saya seperti mereka sendiri. Anda sabar dan baik hati. Anda adalah pria terbaik yang pernah saya temui dan saya akan hilang tanpa Anda. Magnus, aku mencintaimu. Ini adalah caraku yang panjang lebar untuk mengatakan ya, aku akan menikahimu. Magnus Bane, maukah kau menikah denganku?” He knew his pronunciation wasn’t perfect and he was nowhere near fluent in his boyfriend’s native tongue, but he had been practicing and Cat had been a slave driver when it came to teaching him. And if by the way Magnus gave a surprised watery laugh, Alec had done a pretty good job.

“Oh Alexander.” Was all Magnus was able to say before he threw himself at the Nephilim and kissed him deeply. Uncaring if his outfit got dirty as they hit the ground.

After a few, or several dozen, kisses later, Alec smiled, “I take that as a yes?”

Magnus let out a gleeful laugh and nodded, “Yes Alexander, I will marry you. Now give me your hand.” Moving so he could straddle Alec’s lap while the younger man sat up, he took Alec’s hand and slid the engagement ring onto it. The ring was simple yet elegant. A silver band with two braids circling around it. The words Aku Cinta Kamu were etched inside so Alec would never forget. Not that Magnus thought his fiance would.

Alec looked at it for a minute with his mouth slightly ajar. This engagement was far different than his previous one. He was glad for that. He was actually excited about marrying Magnus. “This is beautiful. Thank you.”

“Anything for you, my love.” Magnus kissed the ring and Alec’s finger’s before kissing the man himself.

After pulling away from the tender kiss, Alec reached into his pocket. A part of him wished he could have given Magnus the Lightwood family ring, a sign to all in Shadowhunter Society that Magnus would be a Lightwood, but a bigger part of him was glad he didn’t. He was proud of the ring he had made for Magnus. Taking his fiance’s hand in his, he slid the ring onto the one finger that always remained ringless until now. 

All the anxiety Alec felt at Magnus finally seeing the ring bled away the moment Magnus saw it. “Alexander.” The awe in his voice said it all. Like Alec’s, the engagement ring was pure silver with Mio Amato written inside. Instead of two braids however, there was one in the center inlaid with gold cat’s eye and zircon.

Suddenly Alec was being pulled up. “We need to go now.” Magnus said urgently as he created a portal, “You are wearing far too much clothes for such an occasion.”

Alec laughed as they stumbled into their hotel room and promptly tossed onto the bed. “So we aren’t announcing our engagement?”

“Nope.” Magnus started kissing Alec first on the mouth then proceeded downward, “They can wait. This can’t.

“No obje- ah.” Alec groaned as Magnus nipped at his neck.

Two days later found them portalling back to Alec’s living room where basically everyone was waiting for them. The couple was doing their best not to laugh at their family and friends. Or at least those who knew about the proposals that were supposed to happen. Instead they played it off as if nothing had happened. Magnus kept his hand in Alec’s back pocket, while the Nephilim had his hand hidden by bags. “Hello all who don’t live here.” Magnus smiled before dropping his eyes to Rafe, “Hello, my Spanish Prince. How are you?” Apparently Rafe wasn’t about the farce and marched over then stopped with his hands on his hips. Magnus and Alec both squatted down and waited to see what the boy was up to. “No hugs?”

“Hugs after. I wanna see.” His pout was cute and the pair had to hold back a chuckle.

“See what?” Magnus smiled while playing dumb. When Rafe huffed, Magnus held out his hand and asked, “You mean these?” Alec followed suit.

The second Rafe saw the rings, he lit up and threw himself at his dad and Magnus. “Yay!” The living room erupted into chaos as those who were in on the secrets cheered and shouted congratulations as loud as they could, while those who weren’t quickly caught up.

Once things settled down a bit, Izzy frowned, “Wait. Rafe, you knew? About both of them proposing?”

Rafe, who was now sitting between both Alec and Magnus, nodded, “Daddy asked me if it was okay if he asked Magnus. Magnus asked me if it was okay to marry daddy. I helped Magnus pick out daddy’s ring.”

“You did?” Alec looked surprised but quite pleased.

“Yep.” The little boy grinned. Then he looked at Magnus, “I helped daddy pick out the pretty colors.”

“You did an excellent job.” He leaned down and kissed the top of Rafe’s head. “I’m impressed you managed to keep both of them a secret.”

“I good secret keeper.” Then he frowned, “Most good. I told Luci and Maxie. But shhhed bout nanyone else.”

“You did perfect.” Rafe beamed as he snuggled in.

“Okay, so who knew about the proposals because some of us, cough cough me cough cough, had no idea you two were planning anything.” Jafa crossed his arms a little betrayed he had no idea the plans the couple had.

Magnus and Alec looked at each other before Alec replied, “I talked with Cat initially and she helped me learn Indonesian. Then I brought Petra in to help me think of a ring design. Marcielo knew because he knew someone who could make it for me while having it enchanted. Obviously Rafe knew because I needed to make sure he was okay with Magnus officially joining the family.”

“I was.” Rafe grinned.

“Maryse and Izzy were in my corner along with Rafe.” Magnus smiled at his future mother and sister-inlaw.

This time it was Jace’s turn to pout, “Why didn’t you talk to me? I’m his Parabatai. I know him just as well as Izzy.”

“Because dearest brother, romance is not exactly your thing.” Izzy smiled.

“Bullshit. I can be romantic.” he turned to look at Clary, “Right, Clary?”

“Definitely.” She gave a smile that told everyone his idea of a romantic night probably included demon blood and lots of black. Or asking Simon for restaurant advice.

“Et tu?” He slumped in his seat. 

While Clary tried to console her boyfriend while attempting to hide a laugh, Izzy tossed her hair back, “Mom and I occasionally had to talk Magnus down from doing something too extravagant. Picking out the ring was mainly Magnus, but the proposal needed help. Elephants were going to be involved.”

“Elephants?” Alec and Rafe asked together. Although Rafe sounded excited, while Alec was a little more on the weary side.

“It was going to be marvelous.” Magnus sniffed. “But I will concede that you probably wouldn’t have liked a big showy proposal. Maryse and Izzy convinced me simple and heartfelt was much more your alley.”

“Yes, thank you for foregoing the elephants.” Alec leaned over to kiss Magnus’s cheek.

“How did you do it?” Luke asked. Everyone turned suddenly very interested in what the couple had to say. “Who asked first?”

“Magnus asked first.” Alec began shaking his head when some people whooped while others groaned.

“Double the winnings to anyone who guessed Alec would laugh at me.” Magnus smirked knowing he would rile up the party.

“Alec you didn’t!” Maryse cried. Abhorred at thought that her son would be that cruel.

Running his hands down his face, Alec groaned, “By the Angel. Magnus!”

“Relax darling, I’m only teasing them.” He looked at their friends and family and told them what happened, “I brought Alexander to Jakarta.” Cat gave him a significant look that he returned with a kind smile, “Where we spent most of the day wandering around the city before taking a trip to the outskirts. Now I’m not normally a nature person, but I thought Alexander would like a pretty view. After a bit of a walk, we stopped to look over some green scenery and I knelt down and proposed to him,” He paused for dramatic effect, “To which he laughed at me.”

“By the Angel, Alec!” Jace groaned, “Even I’m not that mean.”

Alec glared at his fiance as he defended, “I wasn’t laughing at him, I was actually quite shocked and touched by his speech.” He held out his finger to his brother and said, “I was laughing because he beat me to it. All I could think was of course he’d propose to me in the exact same spot I was going to propose to him.” Taking Magnus’s hand, he said, “I knelt down in front of him, told him I **wasn’t** laughing at him and then asked him to marry me. We both said yes and exchanged rings.”

“Alright,” Jace nodded, “That isn’t as bad as I thought. How are we just hearing about your engagement now?”

The blonde began to regret his question the moment he saw the absolutely filthy glee in Magnus eyes. He definitely wanted to bleach his mind the seconds the Warlock replied, “We were occupied thereafter the rings were exchanged.”

“What were you doing?” Rafe asked innocently. He frowned when the rest of the room groaned. Maryse looked like she wanted to be anywhere but near her future son-in-law.

Although Magnus opened his mouth first, Alec cut in with, “We were kissing.”

Rafe made a face, “Oh. Yuck.”

“Yes, Rafe. Yuck.” Jace nodded. The rest of the evening was spent talking until the Shadowhunters had to go out on patrol and the Downworlders had their work to do. It was a peaceful evening that no one would forget.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd like to say that the Indonesian translation is 100% from google translate. This is what it's supposed to say in English:  
> Magnus, you are the love of my life. You have helped me grow and be true to myself. You have loved me even when I could barely even stand myself. More importantly, you have loved my children like they are your own. You are patient and kind. You are the best man I have ever met and I would be lost without you. Magnus, I love you. This is my long winded way of saying yes, I will marry you. Magnus Bane, will you marry me?
> 
> Why is today an awesome day? 1. It's Harry Potter's birthday. 2. Since it's HP birthday that also means... IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! Yay! 3. I wrote this chapter and it felt really good to write it and it came pretty easy to me. 4. I GOT A JOB!!!! Today has been a great day ^_^


	13. The Legends Are True

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally another chapter out. I'm sorry it's taking so long but awesome news! I finally have a job and it's been crazy. I've been doing quite a bit of training and by the time I get home I'm ready to collapse. It's great though and I still have every intention to finish Malec's story. 
> 
> I wanted to give a heads up. The time skips between chapters are going to become greater. Months to years generally. Thank you for sticking with me. I adore you all and appreciate the comments. Have a great week. Cheers, my lovely angels!

As August faded into September and the summer schedule rearranged into the school schedule, The Lightwood-Bane household was finding itself into a predicament. While Rafe was adoring his new class and learning more, Maxie too was learning faster than anyone could have anticipated. His powers were growing almost everyday and he loved nothing more than to transform into a bat. On multiple occasions the couple had to wrangle him and put his amber necklace on. They hated it, but it was proving nearly impossible to stop the baby from using his new found powers whenever he wanted. He was a baby, he did what he wanted.

The day finally came after running around like two maniacs attempting to catch Maxie before the Piro’s popped in for their weekly dinner, to tell the elderly couple about little Warlock. With the necklace around Maxie’s neck and the baby pouting because he couldn’t fly around anymore, Alec groaned, “We have to tell them. We have to tell the Piro’s.” Magnus looked over at his fiance as Rafe crawled into the older man’s lap. “It’s not fair to Maxie to stop him from practicing in his own home.”

Magnus’s eyes softened, “You are truly a wonder, Alexander. I wholeheartedly agree. I think it’s time for them to know.”

Alec hummed as he hugged a grumbling Maxie to his chest. The little family stayed where they were for a little while before getting up. Twenty minutes later the Piro’s arrived in their usual jovial manner. Upon their a arrival the house quickly began to fill with the homey scents of Italy. The house was filled with laughter and Italian. Music played just loud enough to be heard but it never drowned out the conversations that took place.

After supper was eaten and the food put away, the adults sat on the couches while the kids and Luci played on the floor. Alec cleared his throat and sat up straighter, “Nonna. Nonno. Magnus and I would like to tell you something.”

“You’re adopting another child?” Nonno guessed with a smile.

Nonna cooed, “That would be lovely. More babies!”

Alec frowned, “Ah no.” The Piro’s faces fell a little. “Actually we wanted to talk to you about Maxie.”

“Is he alright?” The panic and concern in Nonna’s voice made Alec feel bad.

Shaking his head, the Nephilim said, “Yes, he’s perfectly fine. It’s just…” He looked over to Magnus who nodded, “He’s… special.” The Piro’s narrowed their eyes at Alec before turning their gaze to the little boy trying to snatch Luci’s wagging tail. Letting out a frustrated sigh, Alec said, “I’m just going to say. Maxie is a Warlock.”

The Piro’s eyes shot back to the young man. “What?”

“Maxie is a Warlock. He… He can do magic. A little too well.” He muttered the last part as he looked over to his son, “As Jace likes to say, ‘All the legends are true.’ There’s a hidden supernatural world that exists and one being that is part of it is Warlocks.”

“Polpetto,” Nonno began carefully, “You are trying to say magic is… real?” It was clear as day he was beginning to think Alec maybe was a little too stressed and making things up. Or hadn’t slept in a few days and was getting confused. 

Staying strong, Alec nodded, “Yes.”

“Nonno. Nonna.” Magnus smiled while placing his hand on Alec’s, “I know this may sound a little crazy and out of nowhere, but what Alexander is saying is true.” The older couple looked at the Warlock a little betrayed. Like he was enabling Alec’s little fantasy. “If you are open to it, we can show you that magic is real. Are you okay with that?” They gave a slow nod with determined eyes, “Good. What you also need to know is that I too am a Warlock. No, don’t give me that look. Again, please be open and we can answer any questions you have in a little while. Now first: Magic.” Opening his hand palm up, he let his magic burst to life. A small flame flicking calmly in his palm. Maxie squealed and clapped at the display while the Piro’s looked on with wide eyes. 

Magnus shifted the flame into a cat shaped glittering object that started stretching in his hand. It lazily blinked its eyes before jumping onto Alec’s lap. It continued its journey until it was close enough to the Piro’s for them to touch if they so choose. Nonna hesitantly reached out to stroke the cat’s fur. “Oh!” She exhaled, “It’s warm.” The cat pushed into her hand causing it to blaze around the palm without burning it.

“I know this is a lot to take in. We just… I wanted you to know. We didn’t want Maxie to have to hide his magic from you. It wouldn’t be fair to any of you.” Alec’s voice was soft as he watched his grandparents interact with his love’s magic.

The room was quiet while the Piro’s internalized the idea of magic being real. Eventually Nonna said, “It is nice to believe, but to see it real?” She shook her head. “Passerotto, can do this too?”

“Ahh,” Magnus made a face clearly stating the baby wasn’t quite there yet, “He can make sparks, but nothing quite solid yet.”

“Thankfully.” Alec muttered. He was kind of dreading the day his son could.

Nudging his fiance, Magnus continued, “Currently he excels at levitating items and,” He looked over at Alec whom finished with, “Transform into a bat.”

“Transform into…” Nonna gasped.

“Yes.” Alec sighed, “Not sure why he loves bats, but yes.”

“Which is quite impressive. Transformation magic is quite tricky and he does it naturally.” Magnus smiled proudly, “Even _I_ had some trouble when I was learning to perform it. I’m a master now, but it’s not my favorite thing to do.”

“I can imagine.” Nonno shook his head. “Is Rafe also a W-Warlock?”

“No. He’s um…” Alec twitched anxiously. The deep ingrained teachings of the Nephilim warring with his desire to be open with the Piro’s and not to hide what he and Rafe were. “He’s… He actually like me. We are a part of a society known as Shadowhunters.”

“Shadowhunters?” This time Nonno didn’t sound too impressed. Which ouch. 

“Yes. We fight-” Alec cut himself off as he looked at Magnus in panic. Did he really want to tell the Piro’s that demons exist?”

“They are a society of beings that protect the world from things that go bump in the night.” Magnus smiled. “We Downworlders-” Magnus frowned, “Those who have certain abilities… We aren’t telling them right.” He sighed while pinching the bridge of his nose. “Okay. Shadow World 101.” He looked at the Piro’s seriously, “Beyond the human world lies what is called the Shadow World. It is the home of the Supernatural. You have five specific species that live in it. You have the ever lovely Warlocks. We have magic,” He pointed to the cat that was now stretched between the older couple, “Immortality,” His thumb rubbed the back of Alec’s hand soothingly causing the man to smile, “And what is known as a Warlock mark. Generally don’t ask a Warlock what theirs is because that is considered rude. Mine are cat’s eyes. I’d show you but they tend to get Alexander a little heated.”

Magnus grinned mischievously while Alec’s cheeks burned red and he cried, “Magnus!”

“It’s true, my love. Anyway, next you have the Werewolves. They can shift into a wolf form when their emotions spike. Full moons have a greater pull on them and young ones generally shift during it, but the older they are the better they are at controlling the shift. They have greater strength, smell, and can run faster than the normal human. Then you have Vampires. Yes, they exist. They can’t come out during the day time, they need to drink blood, have far superior speed than almost any other race, and are snarky little bastards.”

“Usually.” Alec corrected.

“Yes, usually. Then there are the Seelies or Fairies as most have come to know them. They are the most recluse of us and to a degree the most dangerous. They cannot lie, but they speak in riddles. They have nature magic and are far fairer than any race unless you can see down to their true form. Very few can outside of those taught to look beyond what is in front of them. Never insult them, they have a long memory and have the patience of a saint. Lastly, we have the Shadowhunters or Nephilim.”

“Nephilim?” Nonno Asked.

Nonna followed with, “Like half human, half angel?”

Magnus nodded, “Yes, although their creation is a bit different. No Angel procreated with a human to make their race.”

“Then how-” Nonna frowned.

“Jonathan Shadowhunter, the Father of our race, summoned an angel. The Angel gave Jonathan some of his blood to drink which transformed him into a Nephilim.” Alec said.

“Okay?” It was a bit hard to believe, but at this point it wasn’t exactly the craziest thing they’ve heard.

“Shadowhunters are like the police of the Shadow World. They took it upon themselves to keep evil and supernatural away from the human world. They use angelic ruins to aid them in their fight, forge angelic weapons to fight with, and have superior bodies in a way compared to humans. They’re annoying,” Seeing Alec narrow his eyes, Magnus continued with, “But this generation is getting better and are actually trying to mend their relationship with the other species. It’s just taking some time.”

“And you,” Nonno pointed to Alec, “And Rafe are these Shadowhunters?”

“Yes.” Alec nodded.

“Your brothers and sister? Mother? Clary? Simon? The nice black cop… Luke?” Nonno looked up trying to remember Alec’s family.

“Sort of. Jace, Max, Izzy, Clary, and my mom are. Luke is actually a Werewolf and Simon… Simon is a Vampire.” Alec winced at the end.

The older couple’s brows furrowed in confusion. Nonna was the one to say, “But Simon comes during the day.”

Rubbing the back of his head, Alec said, “He’s special. He’s known as a Daywalker and is currently one of a kind. They happen occasionally, but it’s extremely rare. We thought they were myths until it happened to him.”

“Interesting.” Nonno looked at Alec hard for a bit before asking, “When you were working at the club, were you really doing Shadowhunter things? Are you retired now?”

Alec looked down at his hands and quietly replied, “No. I was honestly working in the club. I’ve… I’m actually shunned from Shadowhunter society. A few years ago I did something the Clave, the ruling body of the Nephilim, did not agree with and stripped me of my runes. In the eyes of the Shadowhunters I no longer exist. Although by blood I am a Nephilim, I am all but dead to them.”

“Alec.” The heartbreak in Nonna’s voice had him giving her a sad smile. He started to laugh when she scowled and declared, “I will find them and give them a piece of my mind. How dare they! Polpetto a good boy! Great father. They are stupid!”

“Thanks, Nonna. I knew what could happen when I did what I did, but thank you.” He wiped a few stray tears from his eyes.

“What of Rafe?” Nonno asked.

Leaning into Magnus, Alec said, “Currently, we;re raising him as a regular human kid. Going to public school, learning his letters and math, and playing with kids his own age. If and when he’s ready I’ll have my family talk to their local leader about training. If… If he decides to become a Shadowhunter,” He eyes shifted to where Rafe was helping Maxie run away from Luci who was barking gayly at the fun, “I probably won’t be his guardian anymore. Since I am no longer a Shadowhunter and Magnus is a Warlock, he’ll be taken into the Institute where he will be trained to be a Shadowhunter. He’ll be with my family, but…” He shook his head feeling the heartbreak of Rafe one day joining the ranks of the Nephilim.

“They wouldn’t take him from you!” Nonno frowned, “Would they?”

“They would.” Magnus confirmed gently, “When Shadowhunters leave their society and marry a human, their children are visited every six years from the time they are six and asked if they would like to be a Shadowhunter. If they agree, they are taken to the local Institute to be trained. They are forbidden from seeing their family again.”

“That is absurd!” Nonna cried.

“Shadowhunters have some archaic rules. However, with how things are now Rafe might be able to visit when Alec’s siblings or mother do.” Looking over at Rafe, Magnus slowly shook his head, “Rafe isn’t ready for that. He’s still scared of the Shadow World and wouldn’t do well being fully immersed in it. We’ve asked him and right now he just wants to be a little boy. We and Alec’s family are teaching him about the history and what it means to be a Shadowhunter in case one day he wants to join their ranks, but for now he’s happy where he is.”

“Your world sounds complicated.” Nonno huffed.

“It can be.” Alec chuckled humorlessly. “I just want him to be happy. I want both of them happy and loved.”

“And they are.” Nonna leaned over to pat his knee. “Anyone who looks at this family can see that.” The rest of the afternoon was spent talking about nothing and answering questions that popped up about the Shadow World. Although the Piro’s were still weary and unsure they took the news with grace and didn’t treat the boys any differently. They still doted on them and snuck them treats whenever Magnus and Alec weren’t looking. To their relief the Piro’s only startled a little the first time they saw not only Maxie’s Warlock mark, but also him as a bat. Afterwards it was like they had known all along. Peace of mind and security once again fell over the Lightwood-Bane apartment


	14. This Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a little while. Life's been crazy, but I promise I'm still working on this. Thank you everyone who commented, I appreciate it :) Ya'll are wonderful. I hope you enjoy this chapter and have a great week!

“How are the boys doing?” As Alec calmly watched from the corner talking on his cell, he could see his friends moving about doing last minute touch ups. Tara inspected the bouquet for the tenth time to make sure it was just right. Petra and Mila fluttering around Ash’s dress to make sure there weren’t any stains and it sat just right. Then there was Ash, the beautiful bride. She smiled down at her engagement ring lost in her own world. In all honesty, Alec felt a little ridiculous being in the suite. While the women moved around albeit chaotically, they knew what needed to be done and how to fix any accidents. The best Alec could do was get dressed, bring drinks or snacks whenever someone wanted them, and compliment everyone. Sometimes he wished he had paid better attention to the workers at his job or Magnus.

With a smile on his face, Alec listened as Nonna told him about her day with the boys. He spoke to them for a few minutes before having to hang up and actually get ready for the wedding. The wedding planner popped her head in with a smile, “Five minutes ladies and gentleman. We’ll be lining up in a minute.” And just like that she disappeared. The energy in the room skyrocketed with excitement and some anxiety. It almost made Alec’s head spin.

After taking his place in the line up, Ash came up to him with a watery smile. “Alex,” Her grin grew wider as she took his hand, “Thank you for being part of my party. Thank you for saving me. If it wasn’t for you, I may not be here right now.” Then she laughed, “Well, I’d be on this earth, but I never would have met all these amazing women and definitely wouldn’t have met the love of my life. So thank you. For everything.”

“Of course. You never have to thank me for being your friend.” He kissed her cheek and leaned down to hug her doing his best not to ruin anything.

“Oh dear,” She started giggling, “I can’t cry yet.” Pulling out a handkerchief, Alec handed it over for her to dab the tears away. “Magnus isn’t going to know what hit him.”

“Magnus?” Alec grinned, “Your soon to be husband isn’t going to know what hit him. I’m sorry Ash, he might faint.” She let out another laugh before the planner slid back in and informed them it was time to start. With a smile she couldn’t stop, she straightened up and took Alec’s offered arm. 

Two beats after the music started playing, the doors opened. With a nod from the planner, the flower girl and ring bearer started their slow walk down the aisle. Once they were half-way down, Mila gracefully began her decent down. “Alex?” Ash whispered anxiety evident in her voice, “This is really happening.”

He looked down at his friend to see the smile no longer there. “It is. What’s up?”

“I don’t know. I’m excited. I want to marry him, but…” Walking down that aisle was suddenly terrifying.

“Do I need to whisk you away? Kidnap your husband to be and have a private wedding with you, him, the officiant, Tara and whoever the best man is? I’ll do it.”

Ash giggled, “No. No, I’m just… This is scary.”

“I know.” Alec offered a soft smile. “Ready?”

“I think so?”

“We have two options: I whisk you away and then kidnap a man or we walk down that aisle and not only make the entire room cry, but make your fiance ball like a baby. Which is a better option? Or if you really want to we could skip this and go eat tacos. It’s your day.” The pair took the final step right before they were to walk out into the church.

Taking a deep breath, her face shifted to one of determination, “Ima make grown men cry and swoon.”

“That’s the Ash I know.” He quickly kissed her cheek before the pair started slowly walking down the aisle. Just as predicted very few in the church had dry eyes as the bride walked down the aisle with her head held high and a giddy smile on her face. By the time she made it to the front she couldn’t remember why she ever felt terrified.

The pair paused before the priest and groom. The older gentleman smiled as he asked, “Alex, do you support Ash in her wedding to Michael?”

“I do.” The brunette replied seriously. With the nod from the priest, Alec leaned down to give one more kiss to the cheek before stepping back so Michael could take Ash’s hand. Knowing she wouldn’t fall, Alec took his place behind Petra and watched the rest of the ceremony.

The wedding was beautiful. The bride and groom wrote their own vows leaving everyone once again crying. Every so often Alec’s eyes would drift to Magnus’s and the excitement of their wedding would always course through him. He couldn’t wait to marry the man. If it wasn’t for the fact that Magnus had never been married before and deserved whatever kind of wedding he wanted, Alec would have probably eloped by now. He was ready to be Magnus’s husband. But he could wait. It wasn’t that far away, only a couple more months.

After his eyes found Magnus for the 400th time, Alec’s eyes finally drifted back to Ash where she was receiving her first married kiss. It was beautiful and the pure joy on his friend’s face made his chest bloom with warmth. The church filled with cheering as the couple were announced as wedded. The music started up and the pair marched down the aisle like the king and queen they were. Alec nodded at the groom’s man that he had been paired up with. He honestly didn’t know the groom’s friends all that well, but they had been friendly enough the few times they’d met. 

For the next few minutes everyone milled about in the church congratulating the couple and commenting on how beautiful the ceremony was. Alec stood off to the side smiling at how happy everyone was.Startling only a little when familiar arms wrapped around his waist, the brunette turned to see his fiance. “You looked ravishing up there.” Magnus purred into the younger man’s ear. “The things this _well tailored _suit does to you.” His eyes raked over Alec. The younger man’s suit was a nice blend between the bridal and groom parties. The suit was a light grey three piece suit that matched the groomsman, however where their shirt was white, Alec’s was the same burgundy as the bridesmaid’s dresses. He also wore a burgundy bow tie, while the men wore burgundy ties. It made Magnus’s mouth water.__

__“Magnus, behave.” Alec growled back, his body temperature already rising._ _

__“If I must.” The Warlock dramatically sighed, “But you’re keeping the suit.” Alec raised a brow at his fiance. “It looks marvelous on you and,” Magnus’s eyes flashed gold for a moment as he murmured, “The tailor won’t want it back after tonight.” The Nephilim swore under his breath at the implication._ _

__“Magnus,” Ash called with a smirk on her face, “Whatever you are saying to my bridesman wait until after pictures. I need him fully functional.”_ _

__“Only for you, my lovely Ash.” Magnus’s 1,000 watt smile greeted all who looked at him, “And might I say, you look like a true goddess divine today.” He walked over and gave Ash a kiss on the cheek. “Congratulations, my dear.”_ _

__“Thank you, Magnus. Now off with you before you steal Alex away. You’ll have him soon enough.” She started gently pushing the Warlock towards the door with the other guests. “I want to get these pictures done, I’m starving.”_ _

__“Of course. Don’t take too long, I think I’m going through Alexander withdrawals.” He looked behind him to wink at his future husband._ _

__The girls giggled as Ash replied, “You two are diabetic coma inducing.” Once all the guests had made their way to where the reception was being held, the photographer started ushering the party to different locations in and outside the church. Every pose imaginable was recreated to capture the beauty and sanctity of the day. By the time all the photos had been taken, the bride, groom, and party members were ready to stuff their faces._ _

__With a smile that seemed to have never left her face since walking down the aisle, Ash looked to everyone, “Okay everyone, few more things to do before we can eat and party. Ready? Awesome! Let’s do this.”_ _

__The wedding planner took over as they listened for their cues from the DJ. “Okay, Alex and Mikalah, you two are first.” The little girl looked up at Alec with big blue eyes before holding her hands up for him. He’d met her a few times over the course of the wedding preparations. She reminded him a little of both Ionna and Rafe._ _

__Throughout the room the DJ could be heard talking and getting the guest ready for the wedding party entrances. Finally he started announcing everyone. “We would like to first introduce,” he paused for dramatic effect, “The beautiful flower girl Mikahal Stevenson, escorted this evening by Bridesman Alexander Lightwood!”_ _

__“Ready?” Alec whispered to the little girl. With a thumb in her mouth, the girl nodded. “Okay.” He started out the door to cheers and howls. After first she hid her face into his neck, but after a few seconds she peaked out and started waving to everyone they passed._ _

__As Alec finished his walk over first to Mikahal’s parents and then to his seat next to Magnus, the procession continued, “Next we have the Ring Bearer Martin Stevenson and Groomsman Nicholas Robere... Bridesmaid Petra Kekoa and Groomsman Kai Smith… Bridesmaid Mila Goncharov and Groomsman Joshua Hart… Maid of Honor Tara Cunningham and Best Man Ryan Friedrich… And last but certainly not least, the Lovely couple… MR. MICHAEL AND MRS. ASH GEARON!!!!” The hall erupted into cheers as the newly weds danced in._ _

__It was another twenty minutes before dinner was served and the hall filled with conversations from the several tables. Tara had specifically incorporated this time so the bride and groom could eat without being interrupted. She knew better than to assume they’d eat. That’s not how weddings seemed to work. She couldn’t let her best friend pass out or get sick because too many people wanted to talk to her and then never ended up eating. Not on her watch._ _

__About an hour later, dinner moved on to speeches by party members and loved ones. There was a nice mix between heartfelt and funny stories. Nothing got too heavy. The speeches were sentimental, warm, and inspiring. You could feel the love everyone had for the couple._ _

__Close to the second to last speech, Alec excused himself dropping a kiss to Magnus’s cheek. He weaved his way through the tables and guests standing to listen to the speeches. Finally settling down at the piano off to the side, Alec tried to shake off the nervous energy burning through him. Playing for the Piro’s was far different than playing at your friend’s wedding. By the angel he felt like he was going to puke. Some of his anxiety settled when he felt Mila squeeze his shoulder. She gave him a reassuring smile before moving her mic in front of her._ _

__“Alright everyone, please make your way to the edges of the dance floor. We are now going to invite the lovely newlyweds to share their first dance as husband and wife.” Taking his cue, Alec straightened up and looked up. He watched as everyone gathered around the floor. Magnus scanned the crowd confused as to where Alec had gone. The younger man couldn’t help but silently chuckle. He hadn’t told Magnus that he was playing._ _

__“And now, the first dance.” The DJ’s voice dropped to a deeper tone as the lights faded so only those on the dance floor were on. With a nod from Mila, Alec played the first note and just like that his body moved with its own accord. Mila started the first verse._ _

____

Breathing the moment we are sending out a message  
This love  
Here for a second  
Just to sentence in the story of us  
The sentence in the story of us

Mila paused in her singing so Alec could take over.

Your hand in mine  
We are burning like two flickering lights  
I'll pass this moment  
We are flying through the days and the nights  
flying through the days and the nights

Then Mila joined back in to sing the rest of the song as a duet.

I'm trying to keep  
This image I see  
I know we can't stay there

But still I believe  
That this you and me  
Will always be somewhere

Cause I swear

That when forever fades into a memory  
Nothing will ever take  
Take you away from me  
This promise of mine  
Is a promise in time

And as we looking back  
On who we used to be  
With everything I have  
I swear you'll always see  
This promise of mine  
Is a promise in time

Dance till its over  
Till the morning breeze  
The first ray of sun  
Just hold me close  
You know the road we're on has only begun  
The road we're on has only begun

All the people we've become  
And those we've yet to be somehow  
I wanna show them just how beautiful you looking through my eyes right now  
If they could look through my eyes somehow

I'm trying to keep  
This image I see  
I know we can't stay there (stay there)

But still I believe  
That this you and me  
Will always be somewhere (somewhere)

Cause I swear

That when forever fades into a memory  
Nothing will ever take  
Take you away from me  
This promise of mine  
Is a promise in time

And as we looking back  
On who we used to be  
With everything I have  
I swear you'll always see  
This promise of mine  
Is a promise in time

(this promise of mine) [x2]  
(this promise)

Cause I swear

That when forever fades into a memory  
Nothing will ever take  
Take you away from me  
This promise of mine (this promise of mine)  
Is a promise in time

And as we looking back  
On who we used to be  
With everything I have  
I swear you'll always see  
This promise of mine (promise of mine)  
Is a promise in time (time)

That when forever fades into a memory  
Nothing will ever take  
Take you away from me  
This promise of mine (this promise of mine)  
Is a promise in time (this promise)

At some point, Magnus made his way over to the piano. He’d been surprised when he heard the song being played live. Then he nearly fell over when Alec started singing, actually singing in front of a room full of people. He found himself drifting over to his fiance. Drawn to him by some supernatural force like Alec was a magnet and Magnus a piece of metal. Having noticed the Warlock stop just inside his peripheral vision, Alec slid over a little managing to not stumble over a single key. Taking a seat, Magnus split his attention between the first dance that halfway through included the wedding party and his boyfriend. God his man was a sight to behold as his long fingers gracefully danced over the ivory keys and his soothing voice sang over the speakers. He resisted the urge to lay his head on Alec’s shoulder.

After the song finished, the room once more erupted into clapping and cheers before the DJ started playing music for everyone to dance to. Magnus looked over at the man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with and confessed, “God, you’re perfect.”

Alec snorted as he placed the covering over the keys. “Hardly, I believe last week I spent half of it either in bed or dazed.” Last week had been rough for everyone. 

Pulling Alec up and into his arms, he brought his lips centimetres from his beloved's mouth, “Still perfect. I wouldn’t trade you, just the way you are, for anything in this or any other world.”

“Not even those Hugo Boss boots you’ve been dying to get?” The grin the taller man gave was all carefree and teasing.

Magnus sighed dramatically, “It’s close, but,” He pecked Alec on the lips before bringing their foreheads together, “No, not even for those amazing boots. You are mine Alexander Lightwood and I will fight anyone who tries or says anything.”

“My knight in Armani armor.” The Nephilim hugged him closer.

“Damn right, now,” Magnus pulled away and slid his hand into Alec’s, “Time to dance.”

“Ah!” Alec made a distressed sound as his fiance pulled him onto the dance floor. Before anyone could get too inebriated the couple cut the wedding cake, smooshed it into each other's faces, threw the bouquet with the strict instructions that Alec and Magnus were not allowed to participate (YOU’RE ALREADY GETTING MARRIED!), and then the dancing commenced. With some liquid courage coursing through his body, Alec danced to many of the songs that played as long as Magnus was by his side.

Sometime around midnight, the newlyweds called it a night. They made their rounds to say thank you and good-night and then were whisked away to their hotel. Although the party continued on for another hour or so, Magnus and Alec left not long after. With slurred good-byes, the pair stumbled through a portal where their clothes were thrown half-haphazardly throughout the loft as they made it to the bedroom. They were only heard from again because their oldest son called to see when they would be returning home. An hour or so after the call they looked less dead and were ready to face the world once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This Promise by Sam Tsui and Casey Breves  
> If you haven't heard this song yet, GO DO IT! It's beautiful <3


	15. A Door Finally Shutting, Another Opening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter. It happened, it finally happened haha 
> 
> Have a great week. Cheers, Angels!

“Three more hours.” Alec reminded himself while he waited. Three more hours until his modelling contract was up and he was free of it. After countless hours stressing over the decision to either renew his contract or finally bow out of the modelling world, he finally decided. His modeling days were over. From now on, or at least for now, he would be a stay at home dad until January then he would be a stay at home dad and full time student. 

The decision to go to school had taken less time and worry than the decision to quit modeling. In total it had taken an evening of airing all his worries, making a pros/cons list, and Rafe shaking his head and calling his father an idiot before Alec declared he was going to get his teaching degree. He had just enough time to fill out a few applications, write about three essays, and send them in for the January start date. He was more than ready to be done with modeling and start learning again. 

With a sigh, Gwen plopped down next to him in her next workout set. The crimson red sports bra and matching leggings looked beautiful against her caramel skin. She looked over at her friend and pouted, “How could you leave me? I thought we would be taking the modeling world by storm. We are easily on our way to being the king and queen of this kingdom.”

Chuckling, Alec shook his head, “You know I have no desire to actually rule this world. I only started because it paid well and enabled me to spend time with Maxie and then Rafe. I’m quite excited about becoming a student.”

“Student life is _booooring_.” The woman moaned. “All you do is go to class, study, and write papers. Why would anyone willingly go to that? Once I got my associates, I bounced. The only good thing about college was the parties. God I loved the parties.”

“Unfortunately, that will not be my main focus. I want to get my degree, get certified, and start teaching Italian and possibly Spanish.” Alec frowned, “Although, maybe not Spanish since I know Argentinian and colleges tend to teach Spain Spanish.”

“Make a new niche. I bet students would love to learn another form. Spain Spanish is too mainstream and does very little to help us anywhere else.” Gwen took a long sip of her water, kicking her feet out in front of her.

Alec side eyed her, “That could be said for any language. Dialects and slang are common everywhere.”

“Still, it might get quite a few students. Maybe see about making it a club first or something. If there’s a school group going to Argentina you could help them with being able to converse in the country. Rafe could pop in too.” Suddenly she grinned mischievously, “This needs to happen. I need him to judge them for how awful their pronunciations are!”

Alec slumped a little in his seat, “He is good at that. I don’t know how many times he commented on how bad I was at conversing with him. He always praised Magnus, though.”

“Well, Magnus is perfect in almost every way possible. Even _I_ a woman who cares not for the male sex can admit that. I mean have you heard him wax poetry in a forgiegn language? I mean seriously! Even I Swoon.” She started fanning herself as she laughed.

Eyes gazing far off, Alec muttered, “I definitely have.” Then he blinked with his brows furrowed, “Usually they are raunchy and I want to murder him for saying them in front of the boys.” As Gwen cackled, the photographer called them. Catapulting himself up, Alec shook his head as he offered his hand to his friend. Gwen easily took it and together they walked over to some of the workout equipment set aside for the shoot. By now, having worked together for over a year and a half, Alec didn’t find it uncomfortable when they posed him close to Gwen. It was just another day at work. 

The pair had one more outfit change before the shoot was over. While Gwen went through different yoga poses, Alec was misted with water and moved around the borrowed gym. By the time he was done, Alec was ready to kiss the floor because he was finally **free**. He was required to model no more. 

While he wiped off the water from his arms, face, and neck, Gwen nudged him, “Looks like you have a gentleman caller.” She snickered at Alec's confused face.

Turning, the brunette saw his delicious looking fiancé leaning up against the wall looking as if he should be modeling instead of Alec. By now several other people had noticed him and looked ready to pounce. Alec didn’t pay attention to that though. All he saw was his wonderful boyfriend. Throwing a smile at Gwen, he made his way over. Feeling someone approach, Magnus looked up and smiled happily, “Alexander, my Darling.” His eyes raked over the Nephilim’s body, “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes.” Alec could feel the heat of Magnus’s gaze on him.

“Behave.” The younger man muttered, stepping up to kiss the Warlock on the lips, “What are you doing here? Not that I’m not happy to see you.”

“Never thought you weren’t.” Magnus smiled cheekily, “Today is your last day, I thought I’d pick you up and we’d have a celebratory dinner. Just me, you, and,” His eyes scanned his boyfriend’s body again, “Not a lot of clothes.”

Rolling his eyes, Alec smiled, “Sounds lovely. Let me change and we can head out.”

“Wonderful. Don’t take too long or I might have to come find you.” the look in the Warlock’s eyes told Alec he was thinking of following anyway.

Narrowing his eyes and with very little heat said, “I told you behave.” He turned to walk away as Magnus cackled behind him. Within ten minutes, the Nephilim had changed, said good-bye, made sure Gwen would be alright on her own (apparently she had a date so he didn’t need to worry), and met up with Magnus. Taking his fiance’s hand, Alec felt a weight lift off his shoulders. He never had to come back. He was done.

A few weeks later, Alec found himself drained and teetering on the edge of caring and not so much. As usual, his depression had impeccable timing when it came to rearing its annoying head. Magnus’s birthday was in a couple of days. Initially Alec had wanted to throw him a birthday party with all the bells and whistles he and Izzy could think of. Now however, the idea of more than him, the boys, and Magnus made him want to either hide in the corner or throw up. He did not have the energy to not only set up, but deal with that many people. But Magnus deserved a party to remember. Why couldn’t he have the energy for this one thing?

Thus the Nephilim called in reinforcements in the form Cat and Madzie. He wanted some idea of what to do before calling his sister up and having to break it to her that the party was a no go. She was going to be upset and even more frustrating, she would be understanding about it. Alec loved his family for accepting him as he was. Knowing and changing plans because there were days and weeks where he just _couldn’t_ do anything. But he hated it. He didn’t want his depression to ruin events such as Magnus’s party. He just wanted to be his old broody self and complain about parties even though deep down (now that he had Magnus) a part of him actually liked them.

With a sigh, he called Cat and asked her to come over at her earliest convenience. The following day, while Rafe, Madzie, and Maxie played, Cat and Alec talked about what to do about Magnus’s birthday. They spent hours brainstorming. By the end of the day they still had nothing. Or at least nothing that had Alec’s depression feeling like he could sort of manage their idea. He was beginning to think his depression needed to be on holiday cards. It was starting to feel like another family member.

Two days before Magnus’s birthday, Alec called Cat with an idea that had the blue Warlock laughing, but agreeing to his mad scheme. Thus on the day of Magnus’s birthday, Alec found himself slowly moving about the Warlock’s loft with the boys and Madzie. Everything was almost in place, all they really needed now was the birthday boy who should be finishing up his spa day with Cat. Right on time a portal opened inside the loft.

Alec was glad he had the kids with him because the moment Cat and Magnus stepped through, Rafe, Madzie, and even Maxie shouted ‘Happy Birthday.’ Their enthusiasm outshined Alec's tired celebratory shout. 

The surprise of a small birthday party had Magnus pause where he was. He blinked a few times as he took in not only the decorations, but also his family and ten other guests. Once his brain rebooted, he couldn’t help but laugh in delight. “This is wonderful!” He grinned squatting down so the kids could run (or in Maxie’s case toddle) over to him. He kissed each of their heads and thanked them.

“Do you like it?” Madzie asked as Rafe put a tiara on Magnus’s head.

“I love it.” He pulled them in again causing them all to giggle like mad men. “Was this your idea?”

Rafe shook his head, “No. Daddy’s.” Magnus looked up with wide eyes meeting Alec’s tired blue ones. “Aunt Cat helped with the other party guests. We decorated.”

“You all did wonderful. I love it.” With a final squeeze, Magnus stood up and pulled his fiancé into a hug. “Hello, my love.” He felt Alec relax into him. “Thank you, this is lovely.”

It took Alec a few seconds to talk, finally he said, “You were going to have a big party, but I… I just…” He let out a sigh, “I couldn’t.”

Pulling away, Magnus kissed his Nephilim’s lips then forehead, “I know. Will you family be attending?”

“They’re planning to drop by. They know… They know this is more… Subdued.” Alec gave a small smile.

“Wonderful, then all the important people will be here. You,” He kissed Alec again, “Our lovely boys, Madzie, Cat, your family, Luci, and of course,” He turned to look at the other party guests milling about and drinking, “My lovely stray cats. However did you get them in little party hats?”

Alec snorted while Cat grinned and the kids started cackling, “With lots of effort and definitely some of Cat’s magic.”

“They were not thrilled at the prospect of wearing little hats.” Cat added as Magnus let out a glee filled laugh, “We bribed them with fish and milk.”

“I adore you all. Let’s party!” The birthday boy hollard which was followed by cheers. Luci started jumping around in circles leading to not a few of the cats darting off or hissing. She was good though and didn’t try to chase too many of the cats or annoy them into playing with her. Instead the kids included her in enough activities that she was far more interested in being with her humans than the small furry creatures wandering around the space.

A while later, Alec’s family and their friends showed up with a bottle of wine and some presents. They spent most of the evening relaxing and talking. At different points throughout the night everyone participated in games the kids wanted to play, though none minded. It kept the party interesting until the cake was cut and Magnus opened his presents. It was during the latter that something took Magnus’s breath away. He had just opened a gag gift from Jace and Max, one that had him snorting, when Alec gently pushed the boys towards him. The two boys slowly made their way to him. Rafe helped make sure Maxie didn’t topple over as they carried a medium sized box together.

Once they made it to him without any spills, Rafe and Maxie shouted, “Happy Birthday!” Then climbed on him as he took the box from their hands.

“Thank you, my beautiful boys.” Maxie burrowed under one of Magnus’s arms and leaned into his side, while Rafe stood up on the couch and leaned on the Warlock’s shoulder.

The box was simple with Happy Birthday wrapping paper and too much tape. Magnus could tell the boys had helped and loved the wrapping immediately. The bow and ribbon was a deep blue and a homemade card was stuck to it. He read the card first. It was yet again simple but filled his heart with warmth. He loved his boys. Before opening the actual gift, he kissed each of them. While Maxie giggled, Rafe rolled his eyes and told him to hurry up and open his gift. Instead of opening his gift right away, Magnus pulled Rafe in for more kisses causing the little boy to laugh uncontrollably while trying (and failing) to sound authoritative. Finally Magnus conceded and began opening his present. After lifting the top and pulling off the first tissue paper layer (which was sparkly and had the cats going nuts), he stared down in confusion. His first thought was wondering why the boys had given him paper. Then he thought maybe it was artwork from school. But Maxie wasn’t in school yet and the papers looked quite official. Lifting the papers, he started actually reading them. Within seconds of the words registering, Magnus began to cry. The room fell silent as everyone watched Magnus’s reaction.

Cocking his head, Rafe leaned forward, “Magnus?”

“Oh my boys.” Magnus hiccupped and pulled Rafe and Maxie into him. The older Warlock curled his body around them as if creating a protective barrier between them and everyone else. The rest of the party goers looked over at Alec giving him questioning looks, but all the Nephilim did was shake his head and waited. 

For a moment or two all that could be heard were whispers in a foreign language. Mostly murmurs that even Luke, Maia, and Simon had trouble hearing. The clearest was Maxie since he was still learning volume control, but his replies made very little sense. Finally they all surface with Magnus saying, “Yes. I would love nothing more.” The boys let out happy shrieks as they pounced on the older Warlock.

Simon broke the silence from the guests by asking, “Ah, what just happened?”

Wiping a few tears away and hugging the boys to him, Magnus smiled, “Rafe and Maxie have asked me to adopt them.” His eyes slid over to Alec and softened. For a few beats he missed the cheers and excitement that erupted from his friends and family. The pair were in their own little world until they were each individually pounced on. The celebration was rekindled and back in full swing. 

Alec lasted another half hour before he had to step away from all the cheer and excitement. He was only alone on the roof for maybe five minutes before the door opened. Turning his head, he watched as Magnus made his way over to him. Instead of sitting beside the Nephilim, Magnus stepped in front of him and started carding his fingers through raven hair. The couple was quiet, letting the sounds of the night flow around them. It was some time later when Magnus finally whispered, “You don’t always cave to my wants,” He continued to run his fingers through Alec’s hair as the younger man looked up at him, “But you **always** give me what I need. For that I will always be grateful and love you Alexander. My heart and soul is yours and always will be.” Alec watched him for a beat before reaching up for him. Easily giving in to the silent request, the Warlock bent down until Alec’s long fingers wrapped around his neck and pulled in him. The kiss they shared wasn’t heated or rushed, rather all the love, devotion, and care they had for one another was put into it.

“What did I ever do to deserve you?” Magnus pondered as he leaned his forehead against his fiance’s. “You’ve given me a love you read about in fairytales, a family I could only dream about, and two wonderful boys that I would do anything for. You are an angel.”

Alec snorted and gave a wry smirk, “Part angel.” Magnus let out a little laugh, “I can’t wait to marry you.”

“Neither can I. Soon my love, soon.” He kissed Alec’s nose before sliding into the seat next to his lover and hugging him.

Alec snuggled in, the embrace clearing some of the fog he had been walking around in. “Once we’re married we can start the adoption process.” Magnus hummed happily. He couldn’t wait to finally marry this man and adopt their kids. It was a dream come true and he would thank any and all gods for the rest of his life for him meeting Alec that fateful day


	16. I Get to Love You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter :) Have a great week! Love you!

It was happening. After all this time, it was finally happening. The buzzing energy surrounding him made Alec more excited than anxious. A far different feel than his botched first wedding. He had actually helped plan this one rather than looking annoyed and telling Izzy to do whatever she wanted. The planning actually became quite therapeutic at one point. There were days where making decisions were too much, but listening to what they had already decided on or brainstorming on details they couldn’t quite figure out had been good for his psyche. The dark uncaring cloud of depression always cleared, even just a little, whenever Magnus and the boys talked about the wedding. 

Now the day had arrived and Alec couldn’t wait for evening to finally fall into place. As his little tent started to clear of family and friends, Maxie and his dad were the last to leave. Hugging his son to his chest, he kissed the boy on the cheek. “Be a good boy for grandpa, okay?”

“Good boy!” Maxie giggled giving his father a wet kiss on his cheek. “Dada marry Papa.”

With a melting heart, Alec smiled, “Yes he is. I’ll see you in a little while. Be good.” Kissing his son, he then hugged his own father. “Thank you for coming.”

“Of course, Alec.” Shifting Maxie on his hip, Robert grew solemn. “I know I wasn’t your biggest supporter when you… when you started dating Magnus, but,” He took a breath and placed a hand on his son’s shoulder, “I’m proud of you and I know Magnus loves you and the boys more than anything. I can see how happy you are with him. I’m…That’s all I’ve ever wanted for you and your siblings. To be happy, especially with someone you love.” Pulling Alec in for a hug, Robert whispered, “I love you, Alec.”

“I love you too, dad.” They embraced for a few seconds more, before pulling away. “See you in a little while.” Robert nodded, gave a soft smile, and headed out of the tent. Alec watched as Jace patted their father on the arm as he entered the tent.

With his sure smile and excitement in his eyes, Jace grinned, “Ready? Because if you’re second guessing at all, I will smuggle you out of here and we’ll change our names to Copernicus and Smitherton. Two nomadic merchants that second as gamboling masterminds.”

Alec let out a laugh and shook his head, “I think I’m good. I’m ready.”

“You sure? Is this like your first wedding where you say you’re fine, but really you're questioning every life choice you’ve ever made and contemplating running away to-” Alec threw his hand over his brother’s mouth.

“I’m sure. More sure than almost anything else in my life.” Lowering his hand, Alec smiled, “Thanks for being my suggen again or,” Alec frowned, “Man of honor? What’s the Mundane equivalent?”

Jace snorted, “Best man?”

“Yeah, that.” Alec chuckled.

“Of course, Alec. I’m honored to be your suggen. Where you go I go, remember?” 

Alec shook his head, “Sometimes you take that vow a little too seriously.”

Jace shrugged, “How many times have _you_ cockblocked me from having a good time?”

“Never.” Alec rolled his eyes, “Well maybe accidentally twice, but most times it’s because **I was sleeping or trying to get work done** and your euphoric emotional state was distracting me. Not my fault.”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Jace teased then pulled his brother into a hug, “Congratulations Alec, you deserve this more than anyone. You ready?”

Tightening his hold on his brother Alec melted a little into Jace’s hug. They haven’t hugged much and he sort of missed them. “More than anything.”

“Great.” Giving a final squeeze, the blonde pulled away, “I’ll leave you in the very capable hands of Nonna and meet you at the altar. Congrats, brother!” After hugging Nonna, Jace disappeared out of the tent to take his place.

The little old lady made her way to the more than eager groom with a smile on her face, “You look so handsome, Polpetto.” Alec leaned over so she could kiss his cheeks, “Magnus, might faint.”

Letting out a laugh, Alec said, “I hope not. I don’t want to delay more than we have to.”

“He’s a good match for you. Loves you and the boys more than anything and doesn’t hesitate to talk to you.” She patted his hand, “Sign of a very good man.”

“He is. Is it time?” Alec could feel himself start to buzz again with excitement.

Nonna nodded, “Yes. Come here.” Alec bent down to match her height and waited. Taking his hands again, Nonna placed a cool circular object in his hand, “Nonno gave our son something when he got married and now it’s my turn to give mine. It’s supposed to go to a daughter, but,” She shrugged clearly not caring, “You are family. This has been passed down for generations through the maternal line. A good luck trinket as well as a token of security should you need to run for whatever reason.” Alec looked down into the palm of his hand. In it was an old gold coin that had clearly been loved through the generations. You could barely see or read what was on it, but even he knew it probably held quite a bit of worth monetary wise along with sentimentally. 

“Thank you.” He kissed her cheek before slipping the coin into his inner breast pocket. “I’ll treasure it and pass it on once the boys get married.”

“Good.” She patted his hand again, “If you have a girl, she is entitled to it first. Traditionally, it would have been bequeathed to my son with instructions to give it to his daughter when she marries, but you are my family and it feels right that you should have it.”

Pulling her into a hug, Alec whispered, “Thank you. I love you, Nonna.”

“I love you too, Polpetto.” Pulling back, she straightened his jacket and her dress. “Time to get married.”

“Yes.” They both laughed as they waited at the entrance of the tent. The wedding planner nodded upon seeing Alec and signaled for the soft music to start playing. First, Maxie and Rafe walked down the aisle. While Maxie had fun throwing petals, Rafe dutifully held the basket while helping his brother with the flowers and making sure he didn’t fall. Once down the aisle and ushered to Robert and Izzy, Alec looked down at his grandmother, “Ready?” With a nod, Alec took Nonna’s hand and together they walked down to the altar. He couldn’t help smile as he stared at familiar faces. He was glad everyone had managed to make it. For a little while Ash and Mila weren’t sure, but in the end they hopped on a plane to Italy and were able to attend. 

When it was time for Nonna and Alec to part ways, the brunette bent down to kiss her cheek and whispered a few words to her. She whispered a quick blessing back before joining her husband in the crowd. Stepping up to take his place, Alec turned when he felt Jace squeeze his shoulders. He was glad his brother was beside him. It felt right.

Movement out of the corner of his eye had the Nephilim turn. His heart stopped for a second or two as his eyes fixated on his fiance. Forget Magnus fainting, Alec was pretty sure he was about to. Magnus, as usual, looked amazing and all he was currently looking at was his face. Getting a boner in front of everyone was probably a terrible idea, but by the Angel did Magnus look amazing. The man was smiling brightly as he walked down. There was no doubt in anyone’s mind how excited the Warlock was to finally get married. Alec’s eyes softened as his mother’s laugh rang softly above the music. Her eyes caught his and the love she had for him lit Alec up. Then the world seemed to slow when Magnus turned his attention away from Maryse and focused solely on Alec. For a brief moment, gold cat eyes flashed resulting in Alec’s breath being taken away. Before he knew it, Magnus broke eye contact to kiss Maryse on the cheek and step up onto the altar.

Taking his fiance’s hand, Alec’s world faded to only Magnus. He barely heard what the Officiate said. Now that he could actually kind of focus on anything other than Magnus’s eyes, Alec finally took in the man’s appearance. His hair was high with dark blue streaked throughout it. If you weren’t looking for it, the blue blended into the man’s dark hair. His makeup was surprisingly minimal, but managed to bring out his eyes and sharpen his features. Alec was having a hard time deciding whether to look at Magnus’s eyes or lips. The smirk on the Warlock’s mouth informed Alec he knew _exactly_ what he was doing. A part of the Nephilim wanted to scowl at his fiance, but most of him just wanted to pounce. However, that would be highly inappropriate and he had the rest of the night to ravage him with kisses. It was going to happen.

Trying to cut that line of thought off before he unconsciously pulled Magnus into a fiery kiss that their sons and family should never witness, Alec blinked and let his eyes drop to Magnus’s outfit. The Warlock had wanted it to be a surprise, promising it would be worth the wait. And boy, he wasn’t wrong. The slim black dress pants he wore were tailored perfectly for him, making his lean, muscular legs stand out. The textured black suit coat fit him like a glove which wasn’t surprisingly but still made Alec excited to rip it off of him. The dark blue shirt with the ruffled front suited Magnus perfectly. It gave the outfit character, Alec really wanted to run his fingers over it. Lastly the black and blue vest hugged the man like a second skin. If Alec was a lesser man, he may have been jealous of the article of clothing. But he wasn’t. That would have been ridiculous. The only jewelry the Warlock wore was the engagement soon to be wedding ring Alec had given him months earlier. As much as Alec liked the many necklaces, earrings, and rings Magnus wore, he secretly liked that the only one he wore that day was something Alec had given him. Something the Nephilim had given that was an eternal promise of his love and devotion for the man.

The last thing Magnus wore, that all the other guests also had, was a dark blue silk ribbon around his left wrist. It was one of the few things in the wedding Magnus had been adamant about. It was a Warlock wedding tradition and therefore something Alec never thought twice about. If it was important to Magnus, then of course the brunette was going to agree to have it part of the ceremony. If Alec was still a Shadowhunter, he would have insisted that they wore something gold and incorporated the Wedding Rune. He wasn’t sure _how_ they would have gotten Magnus to wear it, but they would have figured something out. 

Currently Alec was the only one without a blue ribbon around his wrist, but he would soon. As his long fingers glided over the silky material, the Officiate (one of Magnus’s friends) announced it was time for the handfasting ceremony. Looking up, Alec blinked in mild surprise before his eyes found Magnus once more. A soft smile spread over his lips as the Officiate asked Magnus to untie the ribbon around his wrist. Squeezing Alec's hand, Magnus finally let go and undid the knot and passed the material to his friend. Getting the signal, Alec crossed his wrists before holding Magnus’s hands once more.

As the Officiate began binding their hands together, he recited:

These are the hands of your best friend, loving, caring that are holding yours on your wedding day, as each of you pledge your love and commitment to one another all the days of your life.  
These are the hands that will work alongside yours as you build your future together, as you laugh and cry, as you share your innermost secrets and dreams.  
These are the hands that will welcome you home after a long day.  
These are the hands that will wipe the tears from your eyes, tears of sorrow and tears of joy.  
These are the hands that will hold you tight when you struggle through difficult times.  
These are the hands that will comfort you when you are sick and console you when you are grieving.  
These are the hands that will love you and cherish you throughout the years for the lifetime of happiness.  
These are the hands that will give you support knowing that together as a team everything you wish for can be realized.  
May your hands always be held by one another. May they have the strength to hold on during the storms of stress and the darkness of disillusionment.  
Keep them tender in wondrous love.

Alec and Magnus started to smile widely and let out quiet laughs as they stared into each other’s eyes. The excitement and the feeling of _finally_ making them giddy. Once the Officiate finished with his part, the couple began to recite their vows.

The love I have for you  
Is a love that knows no bounds  
In times of joy as well as sadness,  
In sickness and in health  
I will love you as my equal  
And protect you above all else  
I will share with you my truest feelings  
And when you speak, I will listen  
I will catch you when you fall  
And when you soar, I will help you reach your greatest heights

Stepping closer to each other, Alec said, “Magnus Bane.”

Magnus smiled and followed with, “Alexander Gideon Lightwood.”

And together they finished with, “I am and will always be your loving husband.” The moment the words were spoken, those attending began to cheer.

Magnus pulled Alec forward more by their bound wrists and was about to kiss him when the Officiate laughed, “Wait.” Although the Warlock glared, his friend merely grinned and quieted the guests down. “It is my pleasure to announce Mr. and Mr. Magnus and Alexander Lightwood-Bane. You may now kiss your husband and seal the vows you made to your partner.”

“Finally.” Magnus muttered before pulling Alec the last of the way towards him and kissing him. Once the Warlock was done kissing his husband thoroughly, the couple turned towards the Officiate so he could unbind them. Once their hands were free yet somehow the silk was still tied together (Alec figured magic), they turned to the crowd. Their family and friends started cheering again, throwing petals into the air. The couple laughed before kissing again then walking down the aisle. As they passed their kids, Maxie wiggled out of his aunt’s arms and ran towards his parents. Not bothered in the slightest, Magnus picked the boy up and waited patiently for Alec to scoop up Rafe. Once the boys were securely on their hips, they took each other’s hand and processed down the aisle.

Later that night, after pictures, embarrassing stories, and a first dance that impressed Magnus because when did Alec learn to dance (Answer: Club ladies.)? Alec found himself slightly away from everyone, the waves were lapping lazily at his now bare feet. He laughed quietly to himself as Maxie stomped in the water. The baby happily played and splashed as he held his father’s hands. Bending down, he pulled Maxie into him and kissed his son’s face. As the baby giggled happily, the Nephilim smiled and laughed with him both filled with happiness and love. Alec couldn’t wait to spend the last of his forever with Magnus, Rafe, and Maxie by his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wedding song: I Get to Love You
> 
> Married: Dec 21st (Winter Solstice)
> 
> Everyone makes it, even their sketchy friends, Downworld council, and Meliorn. They wait for it to be closer to sunset/twilight because of their vampire friends. The Shadowhunters stay for a few hours before some have to leave due to patrolling. It's no doubt cool on the beach, but magic.
> 
> As I wrote to my partner in crime about this chapter... Omg its finally happening. Two+ years, two states, two moves, a graduation, and over 200,000 words later THEYRE FINALLY GETTING MARRIED!!! Note: it's apparently been 3 years and a month. I started this fic back in September 2017. Where has the time gone?!


	17. Two Siblings Part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING/TRIGGERS: Drug addiction/abuse, neglect, verbal abuse, People being assholes
> 
> I believe I put this in a previous chapter, but just to reiterate: Chapters hereon will have huge time skips. Mostly years.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter and I will see you next time. Cheers everyone!

To say Alec was exhausted would be an understatement. Fortunately this time his insomnia wasn’t due to any form of depression, but rather finishing his stupid paper for his capstone class. He was honestly ready to be done with school and say farewell to it forever. Which would happen in approximately three years if he ever got this paper finished and edited. He only had seven more pages before he could send it in to his professor and kiss the little bitch good-bye.

While he quietly read, chugged his third, or was it fourth?, cup of coffee, and occasionally clacked away on his keyboard, Magnus tossed and turned in their too big bed. No sleep would be granted to him if Alec remained out on the couch. With a grumble, the Warlock grabbed his pillow and trotted out into the living room where the soft glow from the laptop was the only light. His husband of nearly three and a half years was too absorbed in his paper to notice the older man quietly move around him. The Nephilim startled when Magnus slid under a blanket and rested his head against Alec’s leg. Tired eyes looked owlishly down at the pouting man. “Magnus?” Alec croacked.

Wiggling into a comfortable position, Magnus grumbled, “Can’t sleep without you.”

Running long ivory fingers through soft ink black hair, the younger man replied, “I’m sorry, Mio Amato. A little longer. I’m almost done.”

Whining, Magnus said, “I hate school.”

“I know.” Alec chuckled, “I know. Sleep.” Letting out a hum, Magnus cuddled into his husband’s thigh and the blanket slowly drifting off into sleep. Alec continued on his editing, never noticing how the room slowly grew brighter with the morning glow of the sun. It wasn’t until there was a knock on the door that the man looked up once again startled. Frowning, he looked at the time to see his computer reading 5:23am. Who the hell was knocking at his door that early? Normally he’d suspect his Downworlder friends (they never knocked) or the Piro’s (they always knew when he was pulling an all nighter and had treats for him), but they were in Italy for the next week and a half for their anniversary. Something wasn’t right.

Quietly putting his laptop on the coffee table after saving his paper and carefully slipping away from Magnus, he got up and headed for the door. Palming his dagger, he called, “One moment,” before looking through the peephole. What he saw had him frowning further. Upon opening the door, he stared a little dumbfounded. A teen probably no older than fifteen stood before him with a frown on his face, an old backpack slung over his shoulder, a grimy duffle bag, and a sling held closely to his chest. Cocking his head, Alec asked, “How may I help you?”

“Are you the Warlock Magnus or Alex?” The boy’s voice was rough and quiet like he hadn’t spoken in a while. He shifted restlessly and kept darting his eyes away from the man before him.

Nodding, Alec replied, “I’m Alec. Would you like to come in? Do you need anything to drink or eat?” The boy bit his lip looking unsure for a moment before nodding a yes. Opening the door more, Alec ushered the boy in and put a finger to his lips, “Everyone’s sleeping. Follow me.” He led them into the kitchen where he started making tea and grabbed the boy a glass of water. His suspicion that the boy was not trusting of others was further confirmed when he sniffed the water before drinking it even though he had watched with laser focus Alec fill the glass up. 

After getting the boy something warm to drink and some toast to munch on, Alec finally turned to him. “Is everything okay? I’m assuming you’ve heard about us and need help in some way.” Through the years they still would have Downworlders show up at either the loft or apartment door looking for a safe haven, answers, or direction on what to do next. Their Downworlder friends dubbed them The Lightwood-Bane Home for Lost Souls. Alec couldn’t exactly say he was mad about it. He actually liked helping Downworlders, especially news ones.

The boy opened his mouth when a small cry sounded from his chest. Both males looked down at the now squirming sling. “Shh, Alice. It’s okay. It’s okay, shh.” The boy gently bounced the sling that began moving and got antsy. The baby inside however, didn’t listen and started making pitiful noises.

Knowing the look on the boy’s face well, Alec gently asked, “Is that your sister?”

“Yes.” The boy looked at Alec now guarded like he was ready to fight him if he even dared think about taking the baby from him. “Her name is Alice.”

“That’s a beautiful name. May I see her?” The boy was slow to move, calculating and weighing the pros and cons of revealing his sister to the stranger before him. Finally he scooped the small baby out. Alec tried not to show any surprise at what he saw. It honestly wasn’t the fox ears or tail, the little claws that graced her fingers, or even the slitted pupil that reminded Alec of his husband’s eyes, but rather the state she was in. Like the boy, her hair (and fur) was matted, she was dirty as if she hadn’t been bathed in quite a few days, and her clothes looked worse for wear. He was beginning to understand _why_ the boy had come seeking him out. Getting up slowly and telegraphing his moves, Alec moved over by the boy’s side and held out his finger to the little girl, “Hello, little one.” The baby looked at his finger before making more pitiful sounds.

“When was the last time she ate?” Alec looked up at the boy to see him look away.

“Yesterday.” Alec could tell it was the truth, but the answer perplex him for a moment before it dawned on him: the boy felt guilty for not being able to feed her more. Alec knew from first hand experience how often babies ate. 

Deciding what to do, Alec suggested, “Why don’t you go clean up a little? There’s fresh towels, face cloths, and some soap in the bathroom. You can wash your face and your sister’s and I’ll find something for her to eat. The bathroom is through that door all the way on the right. It should be open. If you need anything, just call.” Frowning, Alec asked, “I’m sorry, I’ve been rude. What is your name?”

Biting his lip again, the boy replied, “Noah. Noah Cale.”

“It’s nice to meet you. Please, if you need anything let me know.” The boy nodded before trudging towards Alec’s room. Taking a deep breath before he murdered someone (because what the actual fuck?!), he headed towards the couch and knelt down. “Magnus.” he called quietly, “Magnus, my love.” The Warlock groaned and tried to burrow deeper into his blanket. “I know you want to sleep, but I need you.”

“Is everything okay?” Cat eyes blinked tiredly at the Nephilim, begging him to let the Warlock sleep a little longer.

“Mio Amato,” The sadness in Alec’s eyes had Magnus sitting up, “A boy came to our door with his baby sister. It’s not good.”

Magnus’s face went grim, “What’s wrong?” 

“I’m not quite sure, he hasn’t said anything except his name is Noah and his sister is Alice. I can tell they’ve been neglected, but I’m not sure about abuse.” He paused for a few seconds before whispering, “She’s a Warlock.” Then his face went a little dopey, “She has cute fox ears and tail. Her eyes are a little like yours.”

Relaxing a bit, Magnus shook his head, “I’m not surprised, foxes have vertical pupils like cats to help see at night.” Lifting his hand, he cupped Alec’s face. His husband closed his eyes and leaned into the touch, “Where are they now?”

Opening his eyes, Alec replied, “Cleaning up in our bathroom. I thought about having them use the main, but the boys will be getting up soon and I thought they should have some privacy.”

“Wonderful idea, Alexander.” He leaned forward to kiss him.

Alec hummed for a few seconds as he kissed back before saying, “I fed Noah some toast and tea, but Alice hasn’t eaten since yesterday. Mind magicking some formula for now, maybe some diapers?”

Magnus’s eyes widened, “She’s that young?”

“Yes. When I said baby, I meant _baby_. Probably around two months.” Magnus’s face darkened at the new information. Reaching up to hold Magnus’s hand, Alec reassured, “They’re with us now. They’re safe.”

“Yes. They are.” With a snap of his fingers a box of formula and diapers appeared on the coffee table. “I’ll make the formula, you go check on the kids.” Leaning up, Alec kissed his husband and headed towards the bedroom. 

Once inside he heard the sink running. Knocking on the door, Alec leaned on the frame with a soft smile. “Do you need any help?” The boy looked over stilling his hands where he was wiping his arm clean. “Would you be comfortable with me holding Alice, while you finish cleaning up?” He looked conflicted before he nodded his head. Slowly walking over, Alec waited patiently for the boy to place his sister in the older man’s arms. “Hello, sweetheart.” Alec cooed. The little girl looked up at him before she started to whimper again. “It’s okay. Everything’s fine. Food is coming, I promise.” He laid her head on his shoulder and started moving around the space while Noah finished wiping down. The boy’s eyes never left Alec as he cleaned as much grime off himself as possible.

“Alexander, darling?” Magnus called before he appeared at the door. He looked more put together and no longer tired. “Hello, my name is Magnus. I am the High Warlock of Brooklyn and Alexander’s husband. A pleasure to meet you and welcome to our home.” He walked further into the room but stopped before he got too close to either the boy or Alec and the baby.

“Hi.” Noah muttered, “Thank you for letting us in.”

“Of course.” Magnus smiled, “I’ve made your sister a bottle.” He held it out and the teen took it carefully. Fiddling with it, Noah looked over to Alec and his sister. Getting the unspoken request, Alec moved over to pass the baby to her brother. “You can feed her in the kitchen if you’re more comfortable or you can use our room. It’s up to you.”

Shifting Alice so she could comfortably suckle the bottle, Noah replied, “I’ll… I’ll stay in here. If that’s okay.”

“More than.” Alec smiled. The four walked into the bedroom where Magnus talked quietly with the boy causing him to chuckle on occasion, while Alec rooted around for clothes. Once he found some that shouldn’t drown the poor boy, he walked over to where Noah was, “If you’d like, you can change into this shirt and pants. We can wash your clothes if you’d like and once the boys are up I can find something for your sister.”

Noah looked up at the two men like he was about to cry, “You don’t… you don’t have to do this. I’m, I’m fine.”

“It’s no trouble.” Alec smiled.

“It’s what we are here for. Relax and if you’d like, you can use the bed to get some rest. I’m sure Alice will be sleepy once her belly is full. There are diapers next to the dresser and a towel. If you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask.” Magnus stepped up next to his Nephilim and put an arm around his waist, “We’ll be just outside. If you get hungry or bored, come out when you’re ready.”

“I’ll most likely be out for about a half hour while I get the boys to school, but Magnus will be here. Do you need anything before we leave you to it?” The Nephilim's voice was soothing and calm, not wanting to overwhelm the scared boy. Once the boy shook his head, the two adults exited their room and shut the door while leaving it a little open just in case. They flopped on the couch with their heads tipped back and eyes shut. “He’s just a boy.”

“She’s just a baby.” Magnus whispered back. The heartbreak in his voice made Alec want to cry. “What do we do?”

“What we always do,” Alec replied. “We help them. Find them a safe place among the Downworld. Offer them support if they must return home.”

“Call Child Services or the Downworlder equivalent if they aren’t safe.” Magnus felt a familiar hand slip into his and squeeze. “Something doesn’t seem right.”

“I know. We’ll figure it out and help them.” Alec’s pocket started chiming and vibrating, signaling it was almost time to wake the boys up for school. Silencing it, the pair remained quiet for a few more moments.

Pulling Alec to his side after his husband snoozed the second alarm, Magnus muttered into his hair, “You need to sleep. I can finish editing your paper and bring the boys to school.”

As tempting as the offer was, Alec shook his head, “Someone needs to be awake if Noah comes out. I’ll take the boys and nap until I’m needed.” Two snoozes later, Alec stood up to wake the boys. As usual, Rafe was a grump to get up and barely opened his eyes as he trudged to the bathroom. Maxie on the other hand was a little tough to initially wake, but the moment he was, he was a ball of energy. A few times his fathers had to remind him to slow down and please be quieter. It’s only 7 in the morning child, calm down please. 

After getting the boys to school, checking in on the bakery, and eating something light, Alec curled up on the couch similar to how Magnus had and passed out. He groggily entered the world of the awakened with his husband calling to him and stroking his arm. With a grumble, he blinked his eyes. “Good afternoon, my love.” Everything went a little faster after that as they got Noah and themselves something to eat, made Alice a bottle, offered the two a pair of clothes that would actually fit them, and then sat down on the couches. With Alice snuggled in his arms, Noah began telling them why he'd run to them. 

Life had never been good for the boy. His father had never been in the picture and his mother never really cared for him. To her, he was just a check with which she could score the drug of the week with. Their apartments always had roaches and something broken. The walls were paper thin with holes. More times than he was comfortable admitting, he had to take showers at school because the water wasn’t turned on. There was always a different man or three in the house who disappeared into his mom’s bedroom. Once he was old enough, he made sure to be out of the apartment as much as possible. His few friend’s parents were kind enough to invite him over for dinner or to sleep once or twice a week, but it was only a small reprieve for the rest of the time. Child Services had been called several times, but before they could do anything his mom always slipped away. They’d moved several times to the point he always had his things packed.

A small smile graced the boy’s lips as he recalled one summer where things were actually pretty good. His mother had met a man that apparently adored her. He gave her all the attention she wanted, bought her almost anything her heart desired, helped her with rehab, and paid for a nice little loft so they didn’t have to live in poverty. Noah had actually really liked the man. He had been nice and taught the boy how to play baseball, they’d watch sports together, and even played a few video games together. With the man in her life, his mother went the longest she had ever gone without drugs. Life was bliss.

Then everything fell apart. The pull for drugs was too strong and his mother fell back into her old lifestyle. She snuck puffs of weed here, did a line there. Noah watched her descend back into her old ways. He had cried to her one night about stopping. How they finally had a nice stable home with a man that loved them. She didn’t care. The drugs for her trumped a stable, loving life. Together, the man and Noah tried to keep her straight, but it did little good. A few months later the man gave up and with a sad goodbye, he bid them both farewell. Not long after the man left, his mom had to basically sell everything and they moved. She fell back into her old ways, entertaining men at all hours, buying and selling drugs, and forgetting more often than not that she had a son.

He paused for a moment before quietly continuing. Nearly a year and a half ago he had been out late at night not wanting to be home yet. The night had been beautiful and his day actually pretty good. He’d managed to get a B on his math exam and a paper he had written. He hadn’t quite ready to come down from the high of actually doing well. Those B’s had been his first in a while. He never actually failed anything, but there were definitely times he almost had. He was your average student and getting a B was almost like winning a free meal at your favorite restaurant. Thus he walked the streets aimlessly enjoying a rare warm night in October. All too soon it was getting too late to be out and he started to head home when he felt an eerie presence near him. He turned around just in time to see glowing green eyes staring at him and a growl that made him shiver. Next thing he knew he was on the ground crying out and thrashing as he was being dragged by his shoulder towards a dilapidated building. Without thinking, he pulled a knife he may have stolen from his pocket and jammed the blade into the dog. The moment the creature let him go, he bolted without looking back. When he safely made it back to the apartment, he shut himself into the bathroom much to his mother’s protest. He cleaned the wounds the best he could and bandaged it so it wouldn’t get infected. The next day he thought he had dreamed the whole thing up because there were no wounds. He convinced himself he had a nightmare and tried not to think of it again.

Less than a month later however, he blacked out one night only to find himself covered in blood and naked in some abandoned building on the outskirts of the city. He managed to make it home without incident, but he was terrified. For almost a day he thought he had accidentally taken some of his mother’s pills (he hadn’t been feeling well the day before), but then flashes from that night started coming back to him. He researched and what he found terrified him. Werewolves weren’t real! Right? That’s impossible. Except he started noticing things. His hazel eyes would become especially green when he was feeling emotions strongly (especially anger). He’d cut himself and within hours it was fully healed. His usually poor eyesight had improved dramatically. He could hear conversations that he literally should not be able to. Scents he normally liked were sometimes too overwhelming for him. And the things that freaked him out the most happened when his emotions were strong. If he was angry at some kid for making fun of him, annoyed with his mother, or one of the men his mother brought home was rude (which happened more often than not), Noah could feel his teeth sharpen and his fingernails start to morph into claws. It was kind of painful when he thought about it.

He started spending less time at home. With transforming or shifting being triggered by the slightest shift in his emotions, he thought it best to be away. It wasn’t like his mother noticed most days. He managed that for months until his mother started showing signs of being pregnant. Then he knew he couldn’t stay away. He stole for her and made sure she at least took care of herself well enough that the baby would be okay. He did his best and overcompensated for his mother’s lack of caring. Unsurprisingly, she was seeing dollar signs instead of an actual human being. Late one night, Alice entered the world screaming. Noah looked down at his baby sister in awe and confusion. His baby sister was perfect. A little on the small side, but a healthy pink, strong lungs, and wiggle that almost had him dropping her. However, she didn’t come out quite how he expected. She had little ears on top of her head, a tail thrashing wildly as she cried, teeny-tiny claws that almost scratched him a few times, and slitted pupils that peeked out whenever her eyes opened for a few seconds. He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t bring her to the hospital or they’d probably take her away to experiment on. He thought out what to do as he cleaned her up and wrapped her in a blanket that wasn’t threadbare. 

From then on, he took care of her. For once, he was relieved that his mother couldn’t give two shits about them. He did his best. They were going as well as they could in a situation like theirs until three nights ago when their mom went off the deep end. She couldn’t find any of her stashes (she’d already burned through all of them) and started yelling and throwing things. All the sounds and heightened emotions were getting to him. All her yelling woke Alice causing her to cry. That angered the detoxing mother. She started yelling obscene things about the baby. Cruel words that for a moment had Noah speechless… then angry. A verbal fight broke out. His eyes flashed or maybe his teeth elongated, he wasn’t sure, but all he knew was his mother recoiling back in fear and disgust. She called him a monster. She called both of them monsters. She threatened to call the police and so he picked Alice up and ran. He’d heard whispers of the Lightwood-Bane’s. Snippets about how they could help someone like him. After finding someone that could point him in the right direction, Noah finally managed to find the apartment above the Italian bakery.

By the end of the story Noah had started to cry, Magnus was patting at his eyes every so often, and Alec looked like he was ready to murder someone. What was really going through Alec’s head was several legal (and illegal) ways to get the kids out of their living arrangements and somewhere safe. He had a few calls to make. There was no way they were going back to that apartment.

By that night Noah and Alice had taken baths, changed into clothes that actually fit, and eaten until their bellies were full. Noah shyly played with Rafe and Maxie Go Fish, while Alec talked quietly with Magnus. They’d already agreed the brother and sister could stay the night, now they were discussing how to proceed. Their next call was going to be Marcielo since he already handled the paperwork regarding Maxie and Rafe. Getting the siblings away from their drug addict mother was their main priority.

Once they spoke with the other Warlock about what to do, they joined the boys in watching a short movie before everyone had to go to bed. Noah curled up on one end of the couch with Alice, while Magnus and Rafe took the other end and Alec cuddled with Max in his chair. It was a quiet night that for the time being had everyone feeling safe and warm.


	18. Two Siblings Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this chapter. I am excited to finally have the siblings in the story. 
> 
> I wanted to clarify this since it wasn't in the story itself, the Lightwood-Banes live in the apartment above the bakery. That is their home on the day to day, but Magnus still has his loft that they stay at from time to time. There is door that connects the two so it's easier to get to for those who aren't Warlocks. Picture the door in Howl's Moving Castle, it's similar to that except only a select few can actually select the Loft Setting.
> 
> Have a great week and for those who celebrate, Happy Thanksgiving! Cheers, Angels!

Four days after Noah and Alice arrived on the Lightwood-Bane doorstep, Alec and Magnus were lying in bed with the minutes ticking by. Their minds raced as each tried to verbalize what they wanted to bring up to their partner. Finally, after chewing his lip almost raw, Alec whispered, “Magnus, I’ve been thinking,” The Warlock turned on his side to face his husband, “We’ve got room, I mean you can always make the apartment bigger, and they’ve been staying with us for a few days and the boys adore them even when Alice cries…”

“They need a safe place and we are probably one of _the_ safest places in the world.” Magnus nodded.

Threading his fingers with his husband’s the Nephilim continued, “We know about what they are.”

“I can teach Alice when she comes into her powers. Maxie and Madzie would love having another Warlock to play with.” The Warlock offered.

“We can have Luke, Maia, Damien, Ezra, Benji, and Accalia help Noah master being a Werewolf.” Alec added.

“The Piro’s would take one look at them and declare them their grandchildren.”

Alec laughed before going quiet again, “We’ve been… We’ve been talking-”

“About expanding our family.”

They stared at each other with hope and slight hesitation in their eyes, “They’re different…” Alec began, “They feel different.”

Moving some of Alec’s hair out of his eyes, Magnus smiled, “They feel right.”

“We’d have to-”

“Ask the boys and them first, but-”

“If all parties agree-”

“We’d definitely take them in with-”

“The purpose of-”

“Eventually adopting them.”

“If that’s what they want, of course.”

“Of course.” Magnus pulled Alec in and hugged him tight, “I love them. I love them already.”

“I do too. By the Angel, Magnus,” The Nephilim held on like his life depended on it, “It’s like the first time I held Maxie-”

“Or saw Rafe.” They quietly laughed knowing they were on the same page and hoping for the best outcome.

The next day they sat Noah down while their sons were at school. Looking apprehensively at the older Warlock, the boy could feel his nails shifting and teeth oscillating between dull and sharp as he carefully played with his sister. Oblivious to her brother’s discomfort, Alice giggled happily as Noah played patty cake with her.

Knowing the teen was on high alert and probably thinking the worst, Magnus smiled kindly and offered tea or something to eat. By the time Alec got back, a little out of breath, the young Werewolf was looking like he was barely hanging on. Seeing the boy, Alec frowned, “Is everything alright?”

The teenager looked up with glossy eyes and cried, “If you don’t want us here, just tell me.” A clawed hand shot to his mouth as his eyes widened in panic and tears started sliding down his face. Alice looked up in surprise at his outburst.

“Oh by the Angel,” Alec muttered, moving to squat down as Magnus put his hand on his husband’s shoulder, “That’s not what we want at all.”

“But you’ve been acting weird! Careful around me like you’ve got bad news.” Hugging his sister to his chest, Noah started scenting her to try and calm down. “And now you’ve waited until your sons are out of the house and-”

“Noah darling, breathe with me,” Magnus gently coached, “In 2... 3… 4 and hold 2...3...4...5...6...7 and out 2...3...4...5...6...7...8. Good, in 2...3...4,” The pair continued to breathe until the boy was less on the verge of shifting and more willing to hear what they had to say.

Once he was in less of a state of panic, Alec softly said, “It’s actually quite the opposite of what you think. We,” He looked up to Magnus who was smiling, “Wanted to ask you if you’d like to stay… with us.”

“For how long?” Noah muttered.

“Um, until you don’t want to anymore?” Noah’s wide eyed looked went from panicked to startled. “We want you and Alice to live with us until you get your own places or move away to college or whatever.” Now Alec was getting a little anxious the longer the teenager said nothing.

“You… You want us to stay? Here with you and Maxie and Rafe?” The hope in Noah’s voice settled some of Alec and Magnus’s nerves.

This time Magnus nodded and answered, “Very much so, but only if you’d like.”

“We don’t have to go back?” The fear in the question had the couple wanting to swaddle the siblings in a blanket burrito and never let anything else bad happen to them.

“No darling,” Magnus smiled, “You don’t need to go back. We actually prefer you never saw your mother again, but we won’t stop you if you need to speak with her.” Noah vehemently shook his head, “But even if you want to, we cannot, in good conscience, ever let you live with her again. We know she is your mother and I know from experience how much you might end up wanting to go back, but we can’t let that happen. She is dangerous for you and your sister.”

Noah looked down, “I know.” He once again hugged her close, “She called us monsters.”

“Which you are not.” The way Magnus said it left no room for argument. The next time he spoke it was softer, “You may live with us as long as you want or if you’d prefer, we can find you another family. Maybe one that is a werewolf or Warlock.” The offer, though right, broke his heart.

Noah didn’t reply right away. Deep in thought, he played with his sister before saying, “I’d… we’d like to stay here. We like it here.”

“And we’d love to have you.” Alec smiled encouragingly.

“What about mom?” He looked up with fear in his eyes, “How are you… She’s still our mom.” _They’re still in her custody._

Alec rubbed the back of his head, “About that, we’ve kind of already started the process of getting you out of her custody.”

“What?” Noah aske with wide startled eyes.

Twirling his wedding ring, the Nephilim replied, “After everything you told us, we couldn’t let you go back to her. She put you and your sister in danger even before she found out what you are. We began the process of getting you safely out of that environment. Whether that meant staying with us or somewhere else that we knew would be safe.”

Noah shot up and growled, “You What! You didn’t even ask! Or tell me!” His eyes started shifting uncontrollably as one hand flexed. “You can’t just do that!” His voice raised in an animalistic way. If he didn’t calm down soon, he would shift.

Putting their hands up and slowly standing, Magnus said, “Noah. Noah look at me,” The Warlock waited until the huffing teen was looking at him with toxic green eyes, “I apologize for not informing you of our intentions, I realize it probably wasn’t the smartest thing we could have done. We should have included you in our action plan. I’m sorry.” Noah was still growling with little snarls coming out. His breathing was heavy and erratic. “Noah, I need… I request that you hand Alice to Alec, please.” When the boy let out a vicious snarl, Magnus clarified, “Noah, the way you are acting you will unintentionally hurt your sister. Alec will make sure she is okay while you work through your emotions. Can you do that?”

Alec slowly inched closer as the young boy growled at him. For several long minutes they played chicken until Alice was finally in Alec’s arms. He moved far enough away for the teen to not really pose a problem but still in eye sight. Not long after Alice was out of his arms did Noah cry out and fully shift into a dark chestnut wolf. He shook his head and snapped confused to where he was and the semi unfamiliar scents around him. He felt caged and wasn’t happy.

While the young Werewolf tried to get his bearings, Magnus called to him. It didn’t help. The wolf was too confused and his emotions too ramped up to respond. Luci didn’t help as she circled around Alec with a low warning growl. Although the Nephilim tried to settle her, she still paced in waiting, ready to take out any threat that would come her family’s way.

Upon seeing the Hellhound, the Werewolf lunged forward an inch or two while snapping. Luci retaliated by snapping back and letting out sounds that would have a normal person cowering in fear. The chaos and tension in the room had Alice start crying which escalated the situation more. Noah started pawing at the ground while barking, his eyes trained on Luci. This went on for several seconds before Magnus straightened up and said, “Enough.” While Luci backed off to plaster herself to Alec’s leg (eyes still not leaving Noah), Noah barely flinched. He snarled back, muscles bunching like he was ready to pounce. 

Summoning a small portion of his power and letting his glamour, Magnus looked at the Werewolf and commanded, “Noah. STOP.” The Werewolf turned to snap at the Warlock before cowering back in fear. He whimpered the longer the burning cat eyes stared at him. Letting out a moan, Noah slowly shifted back into his human form and started crying. The moment the toxic green eyes lowered in submission, Magnus threw his glamour back up and slowly walked over to the boy until he had him in his arms. He let Noah sob into his shoulder as he rubbed the boy’s back. Seconds later, Alec was sitting with them offering support as the teen cried over and over that he was sorry.

They weren’t sure how long they sat there for, but eventually Noah settled down enough to take a shower and change into new clothes. By the time he reentered the living room, Magnus and Alec had tea and some food waiting for him. He wanted to cry again at how kind they were being after he nearly attacked them. They talked again about what the siblings’ options were. By the time the boys returned home and Alec had to leave for his evening class, it was declared that Noah and Alice were the new members of the Lightwood-Bane household. With a little finagling and magic, Alec and Magnus gained custody of the siblings in record time. Noah and Alice never had to see their mother again if they so decided which the teen was more than okay with. Due to the circumstances, Noah would finish the year homeschooled and would start at the local high school starting in September. With the new found stability and support in his life, Noah started to feel safe enough at night to fall into a deeper than usual sleep. It was good. He started looking healthier and happier. It didn’t hurt that Alec and Magnus’s family and friends absolutely adored them. Noah even got a part time job at the bakery where he was learning to bake the treats and interact with customers. He was happy and life was beginning to look up.


	19. Go Team Go!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heads up: Talk of drugs and alcohol, none are actually used
> 
> Long time no post everyone. A whole month. I know. It's just... 2020 unsurprisingly ended in a crazy way so December was kinda rough. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. It was fun to write and I just wanted all the characters to have a good time especially after the last two. Those were pretty heavy. 
> 
> Just a few things, if you haven't noticed yet I've finally decided how many more chapters until this story finishes. 2 more. Holy shit. There were times I never thought it would, but alas there it is. They'll probably be out this week because... I've written them. Gasp! I know. Please read the end notes, it'll give more details about stuff.
> 
> Have a healthy, awesome, wonderful, and productive year. Happy 2021, Angels!

It’d been a long day. The grade he was Student Teaching at for the last few months had been rambunctious. Every single one of his kids too amped up about the upcoming game to pay a single ounce of attention. Alec understood for the most part. Noah had been bouncing off the walls that morning. Football was big in their town. Homecoming was almost on par with Thanksgiving in its sacredness. Who wanted to pay attention about some boring subject like Latin (aside from Alec and maybe two other kids), when the Homecoming rally was in the afternoon? The answer to that was no one. Thus Alec did something to make the day somewhat productive but didn’t require too much brain power. For all three of his classes, he popped in a DVD about a family that lived in Pompeii and let the kids relax as long as they weren’t too loud. You did inform them that a few test questions would be taken from the DVD. Although they groaned, Alec smiled knowing it would be simple questions like What was the name of the town? What was the name of the Volcano? Easy questions that you didn't really need to pay attention for.

Arriving home, he found the apartment had been taken over in Burgundy and Blue and a dozen excited teenagers. “Hi Mr. L-B!” A petite girl with copper hair smiled. Like the rest of the teens, she was already dressed in her cheerleading uniform, hair perfectly in a high ponytail, a perfectly styled bow clipped to her elastic band, and looking peppier than ever.

“Hello, Carly. Hello, everyone.” He greeted as he stepped further in trying not to ruin the posters strewn across the floor. “I brought refreshments.” He held up two boxes of pastries from the bakery. Nonno and Nonna would be closing shop early to sell some of their goods at the game. Because they were angels sent from Italian heaven, all proceeds were to go to the school. Everyone loved the Piro’s.

A chorus of cheers erupted as the squad of teens all but ran towards the kitchen to grab their treat. Managing to place the boxes down and weave his way back into the living room, Alec squatted down to greet his kids. “Hello, my Darlings.” He smiled as Rafe, Maxie, and Alice collided with his chest.

“Daddy!” The three greeted, nearly toppling him with their enthusiasm.

He kissed all of their heads before pulling back, “Where’s Papa?”

They all turned towards the bathroom, Maxie was the one to reply with, “He’s helping Crystal with her hair and makeup..”

“Thank you. Go get a pastry before the others eat ‘em all.” Shrieking, Maxie darted off while Rafe took Alice’s hand and jogged with her to the kitchen, “One each!” Alec called hoping they actually heard him. Standing up, he walked to the bathroom to see Magnus was almost finished with Crystal’s hair. It looked perfect, not a single hair out of place. Luci was laying in the corner, not wanting to deal with the over excited cheerleaders. Upon seeing her human, she trotted over and gave Alec kisses on his hand. He scratched her head for a few seconds before sending her back to her sanctuary. Knocking on the door jamb, he said, “There are pastries in the kitchen when you’re finished.”

From the mirror, Alec watched as the young girl’s face lit up, “Thanks, Mr. L-B!” He chuckled to himself as she started to vibrate a little, ready to go and get her treat.

“Aaaaaand…” Magnus pulled the bow’s ends and smiled, “Finished. Be careful and be free.” He laughed when the girl threw her arms around his waist.

“Thanks, Mr. L-B! You’re the best!” Then she was gone.

Magnus walked over to his husband, wrapped his arms around his waist, leaned in to kiss Alec’s cheek, “Hello, my Love. How was school?” He started kissing down Alec’s neck and grinned knowing what he was doing.

“Behave.” Alec whispered, “It was fine. Kids were too excited about tonight’s game to pay attention to anything I said.” 

“Please tell me you didn’t try to actually teach them anything.” The begging in Magnus’s voice sounded like a long suffering student.

“Well…” Alec kept a straight face for all of three second before letting out a laugh, “Of course not. I knew they’d be useless so I popped in a DVD about Pompeii and let them quietly talk.”

Magnus hummed, “No wonder everyone _loves_ their hott young Latin teacher. Coolest, most handsome teacher award will be given to you.”

“I don’t believe teachers actually get any awards, much less that one.” The younger man shook his head.

“If not, I can definitely award you with-”

Alec cut him off, “Magnus. There are kids.”

“Fine.” Magnus sighed before kissing his husband one last time. Unwrapping his arms, the pair strolled back into the chaos of the living room where the cheerleaders and their kids were finishing up signs and other school support.

About an hour later the teenagers were almost fully packed up and ready to head out. All were pristine in their cheer outfits, not a single hair out of place, and cheeks were decked out in either school colors or with numbers of their significant others. A few of the girls grinned at each other and started walking at a slower rate as a Noah and one other girl started to usher them out of the door.

Rolling his eyes, Noah called, “Come on let’s go. We gotta get to the field.”

“Why in such a rush?” Magnus quirked a brow, “We live maybe ten minutes from the school and the game doesn’t start for another two hours.”

“We do the parade before the game.” The young werewolf reminded his guardian. “I don’t want us to be late.”

As Magnus nodded in understanding, Tina swung her arms around her friend’s shoulders and pulled him into a headlock, “ _And_ Noah here wants to give his Quarterback girlfriend a good luck make out session before they are,” Her voice took on a dramatic tone, “parted for all eternity. Three whole hours they’ll have to be a part. Whatever shall they do?”

As the other cheerleaders chuckled, Noah pouted, “I just want to wish her luck. They’re letting her start since she’s the only senior Quarterback this year.” The starter Quarterback was a junior. Although Eliza, please call me Ko, Stenton rarely started a game, she was honestly content just to play. She loved the sport and the coach always made sure she played at least five minutes every game. Martin may have been an overall better Quarterback, Ko was a mastermind for seeing opportunities. The pair worked well together and never seemed to fight which was a miracle considering the previous year where the three Quarterbacks did nothing **but** fight.

“So cute!” Tina cooed, pinching Noah’s cheek. She held onto him a few seconds more before letting him free, “I’m glad she is. I know she doesn’t care if she starts or not, but come on GIRL POWER!” Alice started chanting ‘Girl Power’ causing the room to chuckle, “That’s right, little miss Alice. GIRL POWER!”

“Alright, alright. Can we go?” Tina let out a laugh and skipped out of the apartment shouting a thank you behind her. As the rest of the cheerleaders filed out, Noah waved to his family, “See you tonight!”

“Have fun.” Magnus waved.

“Be safe.” Alec called right before the door shut. “And then there was silence.”

Not three seconds later, the boys and Alice popped up with posters in hand, “Look Daddy! Posters!” Maxie grinned, waving his hand.

“You made some? Let's go over here so Papa and I can see them.” They walked over to the couches. They oo’d and aw’d as each kid showed them their glittery, sticker masterpieces. “They’re wonderful. Did you do them all by yourself?” The kids nodded with huge grins on their faces.

“We even made Nonno and Nonna some.” Maxie smiled as Rafe pulled out two more posters. They were perhaps even more glittery than the previous three. “Do you think they’ll like them?”

“Oh, I definitely think they will. We can bring it to their stand when we get to the game, okay?” The kids began to cheer causing glitter to fall from the posters. If it wasn’t for Magnus’s magic, Alec may have started crying.

The next few hours consisted of the family eating something light to hold them over, reading for a little while, and then finish getting ready for the game. Alec thought he was all set in his Burgundy ‘Cowen High School Cheerleading Dad’ with a pair of darker blue jeans, he was sorely mistaken. Apparently that wasn’t enough school spirit. By the time they left he had the school’s colors on his cheeks and glitter in his hair. Since it wasn’t a far walk and the day was still pretty nice, the Lightwood-Bane family walked instead of taking the family car Alec and Magnus finally caved in getting. It was useful during the winter months when it was far too cold to walk anywhere or they wanted to appear mundane.

Unsurprisingly, the stadium was packed with family, friends, and rivals for the game. Alec almost suggested he wait out front for their friends, but by the time they made it inside his club ladies, Gwen, her girlfriend, and Shadow World family were already waiting for them. The only ones missing were Luke and the Vampires.

Maryse chuckled as she greeted her eldest child, “Looking festive, Alec.”

The taller brunette glared at his mother even though it held no heat, “Laugh it up, apparently what I wore to school wasn’t ‘School Spirit’ enough.”

“You’d think after two years Alexander would be used to us giving him extra pep.” Magnus laughed, pulling his husband in for a kiss on his cheek. “You look wonderful, Maryse.”

“Thank you. You would definitely win school pride if there was a competition.” His mother-in-law smiled as she hugged him. She wasn’t wrong either. The Warlock, as usual, went all out to support their oldest son’s school. Almost everything about him either sparkled or was in the school colors. He loved supporting his son. “Alright, ready to find our seats?” The group cheered. Alec broke off with the kids so they could give the Piro’s their signs to wave during the game. The Italian couple adored them and promised to use them whenever possible. The Lightwood-Bane’s spent a little bit of time talking with them before wandering off to find their family and friends. Before long the announcer opened the game with welcoming everyone who decided to cheer the teams on and jumping right into announcing the Homecoming court. Everyone cheered as each person was announced.

Gwen leaned into Alec and whispered, “I remember when I was announced as Homecoming Queen. It was amazing and I loved every minute of it.”

“Because all eyes were on you?” Alec smiled.

“Of course!” She giggled before kissing her friend’s cheek.

He pulled her into a side hug as he muttered, “Never change.”

Before long, the court moved off to the side while the juniors, sophomores, and freshman created a little tunnel for the seniors. Everyone quieted down as the announcer began, “Tonight we are here to celebrate the Seniors! First, number 92 the senior Quarterback for the Cowen High school football team: Eliza ‘Ko’ Stenton!” The crowd erupted as she ran through the tunnel and out onto the field. Their coach handed her a burgundy carnation before she took her spot. “Number 51 Linebackman Nicholas ‘Nicky’ Carson… Number 12 Runningback Matthew Brewer… Number 19 Safety Kyle McCoy… 44 Safety Kennith ‘Kenny’ McCoy… and 88 Tackle Brady ‘Got ‘em’ Ward.

“We’d also like to give special attention to the Seniors on the Cheerleading team and Band members who have supported our Football team through every home game. Give it up for the Cheer Captains Bethany Hallowell and Tina Greyson... Abby Brookstone... Taylor ‘Tay’ Brookstone… Noah Cale… Lilliana Smith… and Charli Yurin. For the Cowen High School Band we have Robert “Bobby’ Abynathy...Katlyn Browzer… Cady Brookshire… Steven Gale… Mary-Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Guard… Peter Seeker… and Ana Ward. Give it up for the Cowen High School seniors!” The stadium thundered in cheers. Once everyone settled down, the announcer highlighted the other team’s seniors and welcomed them to the stadium. Once everyone had been announced and the rest of the starting teams called to the field, the National Anthem was sung, the rest of the players cleared the field, and the game began.

It was a tough game. Neither side gave much up and although a few yellow flags had been thrown, it was mostly a clean game. By the time half-time arrived, the players looked like they needed a rest. The band and cheer team had come together to do a performance that wowed the crowd. The Lightwood-Bane section of the crowd was especially enthusiastic and Alec couldn’t help but note how Noah blushed happily when Magnus shouted about him being his son. This of course led to Alec pulling Magnis over to him and giving him a kiss on the cheek. The Warlock beamed. Unsure why he deserved the kiss, but always willing to receive one. 

The second half was just as thrilling and nail biting as the first. Everyone was on the edge of their seats as the two teams played their hardest. It all came down to one play. It had been a risk that paid off. Martin had switched in Ko for Quarterback and all appeared to be normal for a field goal kick. What surprised everyone and had them jumping up was what happened next. Instead of Jonah kicking the ball as one would assume, he ran forward before stopping. The next thing anyone knew, Cowen’s right side Wide Receiver was running the ball to the endzone. Alec frowned as everyone around him started going berserk.

As the field flooded with Burgundy and Blue, Alec turned to his friend and asked, “What just happened?” He still knew nothing about the game even though Noah, Ko, and several other people had tried to explain it to him at least a dozen times.

With an excited grin, Gwen said, “They faked a field goal. Instead of kicking it, they went in for a Touchdown. Do you know how hard that is? How risky?”

“I’m assuming very since everyone is going nuts.” Alec replied.

“You’d be correct. Not even professionals try that very often. Damn that was beautiful.” She jumped up and down unable to contain her excitement.

“I will take your word for it.” He chuckled. As the stadium started to thin out, the Lightwood-Bane section waited a bit, not wanting to be caught in the crowds. By the time they got down to where their son was the crowd had thinned out considerably. “Awesome job, Noah.” Alec hugged his eldest, not caring that the boy was a sweaty mess.

The boy’s eyes flashed for a second in happiness as he said, “Thanks. Ko was amazing! She came up with the last play. Can you believe that! God she’s awesome.”

“Have you seen her yet?” The father asked, “Congratulated her?”

“For a minute or two on the field. Then she was whisked away by her teammates.” He hugged his surrogate dad one more time before making his way through his family and friends. Alec watched with a content smile as the young Werewolf happily laughed and talked. So much had changed in the last few years it sometimes surprised Alec how different the boy had been when he first showed up at the door.

He felt arms come around his waist and a chin rested on his shoulder. “Penny for your thoughts?”

Turning his head, he kissed Magnus on the nose, “Noah’s happy.”

“He is.” Magnus hummed as his eyes followed the boy, “He’s safe and happy.”

“He’s going off to college soon.” There was a hint of sadness in the Nephilim’s voice. He wasn’t ready to watch one of his son’s fly the nest. With Rafe and Maxie he still had over a decade before he needed to worry about that. Noah’s only been part of the family for about 3 years, that wasn’t long enough for Alec to come to terms with the thought.

“Oh Alexander.” Magnus hugged Alec tighter, “I know. Let’s enjoy tonight and worry about that another day. We still have all school year.”

“I know.” Kissing Magnus once more on the cheek, the pair wandered back into the family group. It wasn’t long before Ko and a few of the cheerleaders and football players ambled over basking in the high of the win. “Wonderful job to all of you. That game was close.”

“It was!” Ko grinned as Noah slid his arms around her waist. “I nearly thought we weren’t going to make it, but we did. Dude, Aron can catch anything. Anyone else and they probably would have dropped the ball. I was shaking because who the hell thinks it’s a good idea to run it instead of a field goal?”

“You apparently.” Martin grinned. “I thought you were crazy, but I have learned to trust your particular brand of crazy when it comes to football plays. I think we almost gave coach an aneurysm though.”

“I know. I believe he called me a crazy daughter of a bitch and then hugged me.” The young woman cackled, “Said I should join a college team just to give other coaches a heart attack. But I’m good. I like it, but I’m not college level in love with it. I’m thinking maybe theater.” She turned her head to kiss Noah’s cheek, “Would you join me?”

“As long as I don’t have to be on stage.” The boy blushed.

“Let us know when you have shows and we’ll try to come or watch if they live stream it.” Magnus smiled.

“Of course! I think you’d make a great Stage Manager.” She smiled at her boyfriend, “You’re always tidy and have everything in order.”

“We’ll see. Isn’t there people who need to grovel at your feet or a party to attend?” The second ‘party’ left the cheerleader’s mouth, the other teens started to cheer. “I shouldn’t have said anything.” He groaned.

“Nonsense,” Ko grinned before turning to look at Magnus and Alec, “Noah can come, right? We’re having a party at Martin’s house to celebrate our win.”

“Yes, he may,” Ko and the other cheered, “Who’s driving?”

“I am.” Ko raised her hand, “I promise to bring him back in one piece.”

“Thank you. He’ll meet you at your car, okay?” Magnus’s smile was serene.

“Awesome! See you in a few.” She kissed Noah before bouncing off towards the locker room to grab her stuff.

Noah turned to his foster dads with his arms crossed in a more defensive position rather than in annoyance or mad, “What?”

“Do you have a change of clothes?” The Warlock asked.

Noah appeared to grow more anxious the longer Alec and Magnus looked at him, “Yeah, I brought them with me.”

“Okay. Curfew is 1am, if there’s drinking don’t drink and drive, if anyone else is drinking don’t get in the car with them, if there is drugs we’d appreciate it if you didn’t do them, but if you do please know what you’re taking, don’t do anything you are uncomfortable doing, if you need us for anything don’t hesitate to call. We won’t be mad, we just want you safe, okay? Don’t think you can’t just because you’ve been drinking or you’ve taken something.” Magnus let out a breath and did his best to sound kind as he said, “And I know you’re a teenager and just want to let loose, but also remember you are what you are. It sucks, but you need to remember that some of the things out there will act differently with you because you’re a Werewolf. Just… please be careful and if you need us, Alexander and I will come for you no matter what. We love you and we want you safe. Now,” He clapped his hands, “Go have fun. I know that was heavy, but it needed to be said. Have fun and celebrate a beautifully won game.”

Noah rolled his eyes, but a smile was on his face, “I will. I’ll see you guys later.” He stepped forward and hugged both of his foster dads. “I love you.”

“We love you too.” Alec smiled, “Have fun.” The teenage Werewolf nodded before wandering off to meet up with some of his friends. “He’ll be okay, right?”

“Yes, Alexander. He’s been to parties before.” Magnus chuckled at his worrying husband.

Alec groaned, “Being a dad is stressful.”

“Just wait until Rafe, Maxie, and Alice are in high school.” The Warlock laughed harder as Alec groaned his name pitifully. “Come my dear, let’s join everyone else and celebrate our son’s win.” Letting out a sigh, Alec took Magnus’s hand and joined everyone. Like years previous, the Lightwood-Bane house was filled with family and friends as everyone relaxed and enjoyed the night. As promised, Noah arrived at the door a minute or two before one with a tired but happy look in his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're here then you want to know more about what's been happening and what's to come. So December, as stated above, was a mixed of not so great and okay. I was laid off from my job. That hit kind of hard. I was kinda expecting it (there were glaring signs), but I thought they'd wait until at least the new year. Wasn't so lucky... It sucks. Then I went home as was planned, but while there I found out my dog needs surgery. Apparently it's nothing too bad, but it was recommended to get it out now before it becomes an issue so that's happening.
> 
> I was supposed to be gone 2 weeks, but I came home early and have spent this week trying to figure shit out. Part of that is realizing I really want to work in another country. It feels right when I think about it. I've never really wanted to be anywhere in the US. Even when I was little I knew I didn't want to live in the NE with my family, I like my friends where I am now but hate where I live, and although I loved Texas but it wasn't somewhere I could see myself settling down in. Fingers crossed it's doable and Covid doesn't get in the way. It'd be amazing if it happens.
> 
> Veering away from my personal life somewhat, as you can see I've decided on two more chapters after this. Next will be snapshots with some time skips longer than others and the last the epilogue. As much as I'd love to write more, this story needs to end. It feels more like a drag than something I'm excited to write which isn't fair to anyone. So here it is over two years later this storying is coming to a close. Thank you everyone who had been on this journey with me. You've all been amazing and I truly appreciate everyone of you.


	20. As the Years Pass By

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Depression to the max (sorry)
> 
> This is a heavy chapter with large amounts of time in between. I hope you... I don't know if enjoy is the right word, but like it. Next one is the last chapter and it wraps everything up. Have a wonderful day everyone and happy 2021! Cheers, Angels.

The day was cool and beautiful. The first signs of spring’s arrival everywhere. No snow lay on the ground. Birds were happily chirping in the air while creatures of land were running around enjoying the sun’s rays. It should have been a wonderful day to be outside and enjoy the sun. However, the Lightwood-Bane household was not in the mood to enjoy the sun. In fact one of them cursed it for being such a nice day. Magnus was in a particularly sad mood and it only lifted marginally as his kids started showing up at his loft. Rafe had taken the day off knowing today was not a day to be working. He was the first to arrive with flowers he knew his papa loved and would most likely crack a small smile for. Maxie on the other hand would be a little late. Although he would have much preferred to take the entire day off, he knew his clients needed consistency and made his work half a day. He came in baring pastry goodness and delicious coffee. Alice and Noah came together only a few minutes after Rafe. They had brought with them a few albums and a fluffy blanket.

The day was spent with a solemn atmosphere. It was around dinner time when Maxie looked at his siblings and carefully asked, “Papa, do you want to go visit dad?” They all knew he hadn’t. Not since that fateful day. “He would really-”

“No, Maxie. Just…” The tired Warlock let out a sigh, “Just no. Not today. Maybe another day.”

“Okay, Papa. Another day.” The Lightwood-Bane children all looked at each other sadly.

~~~~

63 years. It had been 63 years since Magnus walked down the aisle with the love of his life and nearly two and a half since he became a widower. Life wasn’t fair. He wouldn’t have changed anything and adored every second with Alec, but no longer having him in Magnus’s life was torture. It ate at him every day. Oh, how he missed his husband more than anything.

He requested his kids didn’t come over today. He just wanted to wallow in self pity and drink without feeling like absolute shit for doing it in front of his amazing boys and darling girl. He wanted one day to drown his sorrows. And that’s what Magnus did. From the time he got up to the current moment, he’d been making one drink after another. Which wasn’t the best idea considering he promised Alec he wouldn’t look to the bottom of a bottle for comfort, but shh Alexander didn’t need to know.

Magnus was barely able to see straight when someone knocked on his door. With a scowl he glared at the front door. _Everyone_ knew not to disturb him today. There had been notices sent to clients about not even thinking about coming by to see him today and his family and friends knew better. Cat would probably wander over at some point, but that wouldn’t be until later. Much later. When Magnus probably didn’t know if he was alive or dead. He’d have to send her a fruit basket or on a month long trip to her favorite spot for dealing with his sorry ass, but that was for future Magnus to deal with.

The knock came again signaling that the person was not leaving. He called out for the person to fuck off (which came out more as a grumbled snarl than anything), but the knocking persisted. Muttering curses to himself as he stumbled and staggered his way to the door, he whipped it open with a snap, “What?” Then he frowned, “What?” The second one was more confused than angry.

“Hello, Magnus. You look…” Meliorn didn’t finish. The Warlock looked like absolute shit. A glaring contrast to what he normally looked. Even as depressed as he was, Magnus always made sure to look pristine around others. It brought some normalcy to his day.

Not knowing what to do, Magnus asked, “What are you doing here?” He stepped aside as Meliorn let himself in.

The Fey king didn’t look particularly impressed by the state of the loft, but refrained from saying anything. Instead he turned to look at the Warlock and replied, “Many decades ago, your Alec saved a fey child.” Magnus' face turned to yearning at his beloved’s name while tears welled up in his eyes, “He not only saved her from a demon, he brought her back to us disregarding the peril his life was in. For his… kindness we Fey were indebted. He didn’t request anything right away but eventually he did.” He held up a medium sized box wrapped with a bow. Attached to it was a letter and a red rose. “Your Alec was a selfless one. He used his no strings attached wish on you.”

As tears fell from Magnus’s eyes, he gingerly took the gift and sat on his couch. Too absorbed in the present, he didn’t hear Meliorn quietly walk away with a cellphone to his ear. Plucking the rose from the box, he closed his eyes and smelled it. Unsurprisingly, it was sweet and fresh. Probably plucked from the Fairy realm. Carelessly waving his hand, he summoned a vase with fresh water before placing the rose in it. Next he picked up the card. Magnus’s heart raced knowing whatever was inside was from his husband. Alec hadn’t written him anything in over two years. He wasn’t sure he was ready to see his beloved’s handwriting again.

Sliding his finger to open the envelope, Magnus covered his mouth with his hand muffling the sob that tried to escape.

Mio Amato,

Happy anniversary. I wish I could have celebrated it with you. I know the last two years have been hard. Probably harder than most times in your life and I am truly sorry I am physically not there to help you through it. Know that I am always with you and one day, hopefully not soon because you have so much more to live for, we will meet again.

I know it will take time, my love, but remember to keep your heart open to love. You have so much to give and I don’t want you to close yourself off. Remember our family, friends, and most of all our children love you. Lean on them when times are hard. It’s okay to do that. You are loved, Magnus. Please, never forget. 

I hope one day you will be able to look back on our time together and smile. That the pain you feel will drift away to something inconsequential and dull so you can look at pictures again and laugh. I want you to laugh. You have a beautiful laugh. I love you, Magnus. I love you more than anything, well maybe not everything have you seen our kids and grandkids? We did that Magnus! You and me. So when you’re feeling sad or like I’m not around just look to them because we both know how scary it is how much alike our kids are to us. I’m a part of you and them.

Happy anniversary, Mio amato. Until we meet again.

Forever yours,  
Alexander Lightwood-Bane.

Putting a spell on the letter, Magnus began sobbing into it. His heart hurt. He missed Alec more than anything. How was he supposed to do this? He loved his kids, but by the Angel he missed Alec. Placing the letter on the coffee table with the rose, Magnus finally opened the box. It was an album. His heart seized when his eyes fell upon the picture on the cover. It was of them on their fifth year anniversary. They looked so young and carefree. Like nothing could touch them. They had so much life, love, and happiness in their faces.

As he flipped through, he couldn’t help the sobbing laughs that would escape him. It was them through the years in no particular order. Probably a strategic move on Alec’s part. He wouldn’t want Magnus going through it, sad as fuck, seeing Alec get older until one day there were no more pictures of him. The present was the best he’d gotten in forever. Top five gifts and he couldn’t fully appreciate it yet. After flipping through nearly half of it, Magnus ended up clutching it to his chest and curling up on his side sobbing harder than before.

Magnus wasn’t sure how long he had been in the fetal position, but he finally came too enough to realize he wasn’t alone. His head was now in Tessa’s lap. The female Warlock softly told him that it was okay and to let it all out as she gently stroked his hair. Knowing that she knew what his pain was like, he did as she said. He cried until he couldn’t. Everything hurt, but he did feel better.

~~

Every year afterwards like clockwork, Meliorn would show up on Alec and Magnus’s anniversary with a gift. Most years it was flowers and a letter, other years it was something more significant. An old sweater preserved with Warlock and Fey magic to not fall apart and retain Alec’s scent for as long as possible. Those were the best presents for Magnus. Other times it was an album to make the Warlock smile. A treat from a place they once visited. A souvenir that Magnus had no idea Alec had squirreled away. A journal Alec had written telling Magnus how much he loved him. Most had been written in Indonesian, while the others were written in the different languages the Nephilim had picked up over the years. Sometimes they were gifts meant for the family. A vacation with a scavenger hunt that always left the family laughing and crying.

Slowly, Magnus relearned to love his wedding anniversary.

~~~  
The 100th anniversary of Alec’s death hit Magnus hard. Almost as hard as the first decade without his husband. He had been a mess. The chaos and sadness in him left the Warlock almost completely vulnerable. Asmodeus almost convinced Magnus to not to join with him, but help him escape so they could rule earth together. If Magnus was good and bowed to his father, perhaps the Fallen Angel would bring his beloved back.

As Asmodeus was forcibly banished back into his realm, the fallen could have sworn he saw two icy blue eyes hovering protectively over Magnus’s shoulder. He was almost sure he saw someone else with his son.

~~~

Fifteen and a handful of decades after Alec’s death, Magnus was finally getting comfortable enough to dip his toe back into the dating life. With encouragement from both his children and his however many great grandchildren, the Warlock started going on dates. By the Angel he was fucking nervous.

~~~

Nearly two hundred years after Alec died, but not quite that many, Dr. Maxie Lightwood-Bane was getting married to a beautifully mischievous Warlock. They had hair like freshly watered moss, eyes that sparkled like the stars, and a smile that could convince anyone that their idea was a wonderful one. Magnus and Alice absolutely adored them and that was enough for Alec to serenely smile as he looked over the small wedding venue.

“Hey, dad.” Alec looked over to see his eldest son grinning happily at him. “Looking good.”

The Nephilim chuckled as he pulled his son in, “How are you, Noah? Glad to see you dressed up for your brother's wedding.”

“Of course. Not everyday, Maxie actually commits himself to someone. Silver seems nice and… I’d say keeps him out of trouble, but I’d be lying.” The werewolf laughed.

“Yeah,” Alec laughed as he shook his head, “They’re something else. A perfect match for Maxie.”

“Are we talking about Silver?” Rafe asked joining the pair. “Hey dad. Noah.”

“Sup, Rafe?” Noah grinned, pulling his little brother into a hug.

“Rafe.” Alec smiled, “You couldn't have dressed a little nicer for Maxie’s wedding?”

Rolling his eyes in a very Lightwood fashion, Rafe replied, “We’re ghosts. It’s not like he can see me. I wore a uniform for way too many years.”

“Aw, poor Mr. Institute Leader. Your life was so hard.” Noah mocked before dodging out of the way.

“Boys.” Alec looked up wondering when his children would ever grow up. Apparently never. “It’s the thought that counts. Come on, it’s about to start.” The three stood in the back off to the side and watched happily as Maxie and Silver exchanged their vows. As Maxie made everyone laugh with his, Alice looked up and gave a soft smile in their direction. Alec had nearly forgotten his daughter had the unique ability to see spirits. It would be nice to speak with her for a bit before he had to return.

In a flash, the ceremony was over and the reception began. The three ghosts remained separate and watched happily as Maxie laughed and talked excitedly with everyone. It made Alec smile as he looked over the crowd to see Cat, Tessa, Meliorn, and Madzie milling about. It’d been far too long since he had last seen them. As his eyes continued, they softened when they fell upon Magnus. He looked good. Happy. He still carried some sadness with him, but he exuded far more excitement and happiness than anything else. He’d even brought a date with him which made Alec smile more.

After the meal and toasting, Alice whispered to Maxie, Silver, and Magnus before leading them off into the hallway. Before she walked through the door she looked straight at her father then disappeared. Taking the hint, he tapped his sons on the shoulder and had them follow him.

“Okay,” Alice breathed out with some nervousness in her voice, “So I wasn't sure what to get you for your wedding because what do you get two Warlocks that have basically everything? But today it almost literally came to me so um… I hope you like it and it doesn't ruin anything.”

Maxie shook his head with a laugh, “I think it’s nearly impossible for you to get us anything that would ruin today. Seriously Alice, impossible.”

“Tell me that after I give it to you,” She muttered. Taking a breath, she looked at her father hesitantly before letting her eyes fall on the couple, “So um, I didn’t actually have to do much for this-”

“Alice.” Maxie rolled his eyes.

“No really. The only thing I’m expending is my abilities and even then it’s like nothing.” The trio frowned. Alec placed his hand on his daughter’s shoulder causing her to visibly relax, “Okay, just going to say it. So um, dad, Noah, and Rafe are here. I know you can’t see them, but they’re next to me.”

“Dad?” Maxie’s lip trembled. Silver looked surprised and a little concerned as they placed their hand on their husband’s shoulder. “Rafe? Noah? All of them? They’re here?”

“Yes.” She looked over at them. Alec was giving a calm yet proud smile, while Rafe and Noah seemed to be tearing up.

“Of course we are.” Alec stepped forward and placed his hand on Maxie’s, “We wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“Yeah!” Rafe cried, “We would never miss something this big!” He wrapped his arms around his brother. Noah was right behind him as he went to hug from the other side.

“Did it get cold in here?” Maxie wiped the tears from his eyes.

Letting out a small laugh, Alice said, “Of course they’re here and,” Her face turned gentle, “Rafe and Noah are hugging you. Dad’s holding your hand.”

Letting out a sob, Maxie cried, “I miss you guys. Thank you for coming.” For a little while Alice played interpreter for the couple and the ghosts. She told Silver how much Alec and the brothers liked them and how the trio wished the newlyweds many centuries of health, wealth, luck, and most of all love.

At one point, Alec detached from the small group to walk over to his husband. Magnus had been quiet. Part of him was too shocked to participate in what was happening. 

“Mio Amato,” Alec whispered, bringing his hand up to Magnus’s face. How he wished he could talk to him for just a few minutes.

As Silver recounted a particular adventure that nearly rivaled some of Magnus’s, Alice stepped over to her papa and whispered, “If… if you want to talk to dad, he’s in front of you.”

Magnus closed his eyes as a few tears started to glide down his cheek, “I didn’t want to hope. My cheek is cold.”

“He’s touching your face. Do you want me to interpret or…” She left it open knowing that whatever they said to each other might be private. She had a feeling that even if Magnus couldn’t hear Alec, he’d know anyway.

“No... Just give me a few minutes, please.” Magnus’s voice was quiet. Alice nodded and drifted back to her brothers and new sibling-in-law.

“Oh Alexander.” Magnus crooned.

“Hello, Magnus.” Alec smiled as his translucent thumb gently rubbed his husband’s cheek, “Thank you for continuing to love and guide our children. They are perfect and happy. That’s all I want for them. Now I want you to be happy. Truly happy.”

Instinctively the Warlock leaned his head forward right as Alec did the same. The two remained that way for some time. Neither speaking, just allowing their few stolen minutes together to convey what words could not.

~~~  
Five years after Maxie’s wedding, Magnus almost died. It had been a close one. His heart even stopped for a minute or two. With the combined powers and vigilance of his family and friends, Magnus made it through. He swore while he drifted between worlds Alec had been sitting beside him telling him to be strong. Stroking his face and telling him it wasn’t his time.

A small part of Magnus wished Alec had been wrong. The part of him that loved living knew Alec had been right and he was glad his Nephilim was right. He wasn’t ready to say good-bye to anyone yet.

~~~  
214 years after Alec had grown old and passed away, Magnus had rushed into action when he heard one of the Institutes had been attacked. A rift had somehow opened causing demons to flood into the sacred space. Magnus rushed in without thinking. He took out dozens of demons, sending them back to where they belonged while Madzie, Maxie, and Silver shut the demonic rift.

They had just finished sewing it up when a demon spawned out of nowhere to attack Rafe’s great great great great great great niece. Seeing the young Shadowhunter in danger, Magnus jumped in to save her. He didn’t make it out of the fight…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I had quite a bit of ideas I wanted to happen throughout the story that just... didn't. Most had to do with later when the kids were older. Maybe one day I'll write snippets. Here were some ideas I wanted to happen:  
> -Chapter or two of Alec actually teaching at a college level with the boys, Alice, and Magnus visiting  
>  -Raunchy poetry ensues via Magnus  
> -Originally Alec was eventually going to be brought into the Downworlder Council meetings as a mediator  
>  -'You're going to each negotiate for another species, if I think you're failing at it I'm taking over and you sit quietly.' -Alec  
>  \- Kids at the meeting *squee*  
> \- Rafe being introduce to Shadowhunter Society, Lydia helps the transition so Rafe isn't taken away  
> -Maxie officially deciding to become a Downworlder Counselor  
> -Rafe becoming an Institute head-> Consul and getting Alec back on the Family tree  
> -Alec trading goods with Gwen for a beautiful dress for his mom to make everyone trip over themselves  
> -Gwen meeting Maia and them dating  
> -Alec getting a motorcycle or at least borrowing one  
> -Alec dealing with the death of his father since he couldn't go to the death ceremony  
> -More post-it note fun  
> -Lightwood-Banes dealing with homophobia via Rafe getting into fights  
> -Torchwood  
>  -Sketchy Downworlders, Alec, Magnus, and Shadowhunters watching Children of Earth, Magnus has to step away at Ianto's death  
> -Yoga  
> -More tattoos  
>  -Alec gets I Love You in different languages and in the handwriting of his family: Indonesian (Magnus), Italian (Maxie), Undecided for Noah and Alice  
> -More interactions with Club Ladies, Sketchy Downworlders


	21. All Roads Lead to Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we've come to the end. Alec and Magnus's story has been told. I hope you've all enjoyed the journey and I would like to say from the bottom of my heart: Thank you. It's been a wild ride that was first imagined when my friend and I were watching season two. We spent hours coming up with ideas and how the story would go. If it wasn't for her, this never would have happened. If it wasn't for all you, it may never have consisted of so many chapters. To all the silent and active readers, I greatly appreciate you and I hope this has the closure you have been waiting for.
> 
> Have a wonderful 2021 and all the years that follow. Cheers, Angels! Until next time...

214 years after Alec passed away, Magnus thought he died while protecting one of Rafe’s descendants from a particularly nasty demon. He remembered jumping in front of the young Shadowhunter. He remembered the pain of being stabbed through the chest while destroying the fucker and sending it back to whatever godforsaken realm it was from. The reason he questioned what happened was because he wasn’t on the battlefield anymore, rather he was standing in the hallway of Maxie’s apartment. Why would he be there though? In all honesty, he wouldn’t willingly return to the place he once called home with Alec. On a few major holidays he would come by because his son would flash him big blue sad eyes and Magnus would cave. Other than that he never stepped foot into the place; the pain still too fresh. 

Taking a deep breath, he continued until he was in front of the door. Obviously he was here for a reason even if he couldn’t remember. Was his age finally affecting his memory? He sure hoped not. Then he’d slowly forget Alec and _that_ was something he could not deal with. 

With shaky fingers, Magnus turned the doorknob and pushed the door open. To his surprise the apartment was different. It was like he had gone back in time to when he still lived there. Maxie’s unique fashion sense (which he totally got from his Papa) and thousands of books didn’t clutter the spacious living room. Everything was how it was before Magnus walked away forever. Too caught up in the painful familiarity of the room he didn’t hear someone enter until the person spoke. “Hello, Magnus,” The Warlock locked up and then slowly turned on his heels. His heart shattered and he could feel the ghost of tears spilling over his cheeks. “Welcome home.” Alec smiled lovingly at him from across the room, slowly making his way towards him.

“No.” Magnus cried taking a single step back and covering his face with his hands. “No, you can’t… you can’t be… You’re-” He let out a sob as memories of Alec’s funeral played in his mind as if it had occurred seconds before. “You’re dead. Whatever this is… stop, just… stop.”

He felt warm, strong arms wrap around him. One hand went up to cradle the back of his head gently scratching his scalp. “It’s really me, Magnus. It’s okay. It’s really me. You’re home.”

“No, it can’t.” Magnus pulled away enough to look up into the clear blue eyes that haunted his dreams. That he still expected to find staring at him at the beginning of each day. His fingers clutched at the surprisingly soft sweater his late husband was wearing. “You can’t be here, you’re dead.” The words hurt like one of Alec’s arrows piercing his heart.

Wiping the tears away from his husband’s face, Alec gave a patient smile tinged with a little sadness. “Mio amato, you are too.”

It took Magnus a moment to register what Alec had said, “What? But, how?”

“Come here.” Alec led his Warlock to the couch where they sat facing each other holding hands. “What do you remember? Take your time, it’s alright.” He lifted a hand to rest it on the caramel cheek he had missed.

Unconsciously leaning into the touch, Magnus closed his eyes and tried to remember. “I was… I was helping some Shadowhunters… There was a rift at an Institute, I was clearing demons while Maxie, Silver, and Madzie closed it… They managed but… One demon survived... It was particularly nasty.” His hand squeezed Alec’s hand not on his cheek. “It was about to kill… to kill…” His eyes shot open in shock, “He was one of Rafe’s descendants. I jumped in front of him and all I remember is a bright light and pain… And then nothing. I was standing in the hallway.”

Alec’s thumb stroked Magnus’s cheek while shaking his head, “You would die protecting one of our son’s descendants.” The silent laugh shining in his eyes dimmed to something more somber. “I’m sorry you died… but I’m glad you’re here”

“It’s okay, I get to see you again. I can’t complain.” Alec removed his hand only to open his arms. Not having to be asked twice, Magnus moved in to hug the man he missed more than anything. They were silent for God knows how long before he finally asked, “Where are we? Are you only here to escort me to whatever lies next?” Even though he was immortal, Magnus, like anyone, feared what waited beyond death. Perhaps more so than most.

“No, mio amato. I’m not here to escort you anywhere, you’re where you’re meant to be. You’re in heaven.” Alec kissed Magnus’s forehead reassuringly.

Unfortunately, Magnus didn’t quite believe him. Looking dubiously, he replied, “But how? I’m the son of Asmodeus. I’m a demon. Demon’s don’t belong in heaven.”

“Technically, you’re only part demon.”

“Still a demon.”

Alec rolled his eyes causing a small smile to form on Magnus’s lips. How he missed his husband’s mannerisms. “But you’re also part human.” With softened blues eyes, Alec pulled Magnus back into him so they were cuddled together. “More than that, you are a magnificent person who deserved more than anyone to have a peaceful final resting place. Just because your father was a demon does not condemn your soul.”

“If you say so.”

“Don’t give me that.” He poked the Warlock in the side causing him to flinch away. “Besides, if anyone tried to take you anywhere else I would have fought them. Hell I’d rally heaven to ensure you found peace with me. I’d cash in all those favors I never did when I was alive. If for whatever reason that didn’t work, I’d go wherever you ended up. No matter where.”

“Even if that meant hell? Tortured ‘til the end of days?” Magnus inquired.

“Even then. I’ve waited a long time to see you again, I would never abandon you.”

“Damnit Alexander. I missed you.” He buried his face in Alec’s shoulder, inhaling the scent he’d almost forgotten.

Alec nuzzled the man in his arms temple while placing light kisses. “I’ve missed you too. I’m sorry for leaving you. I never wanted to.”

In a small hopeful voice, Magnus asked, “We don’t have to be a part anymore?”

Smiling, Alec said, “Not unless you get tired of me and figure out how to leave the apartment.”

Magnus pulled back appalled, “Never!”

With a flash of a teasing grin, Alec laughed, “Then you’re stuck with me.” With a mischievous smile, Magnus swooped in to kiss the shit out of his man. He had over two hundred years to make up for. There was no time to waste when you had the rest of eternity to make up for lost time.

Later, neither knew how much and didn’t really care, the pair was laying on the couch, Magnus’s head resting on Alec’s chest. They stared out the window as the sun set painted the sky in reds, yellows, blues, purples, and pinks. “Do you think we’ll ever get bored of this?”

Alec looked down while Magnus continued to look out the window. “I don’t think so, but you _are_ used to constantly doing something.”

“I’m scared I’m going to get bored and ruin this.” Magnus confessed.

“You won’t ruin this and if you do get bored you’re Magnus Bane. I’m sure given all eternity you’ll figure out how to break the system and throw the greatest parties Heaven has ever seen.” His fingers raked threw his husband’s soft thick tendrils causing Magnus to hum happily. 

Tying to stifle a yawn the Warlock said, “Sounds fun. But I think I’ll wait an eon or two before I get on that. For now I just want to spend time with you.”

Unable to stop himself, Alec pulled Magnus into a passionate kiss before whispering, “Welcome home, mio amato.”

All Magnus could think was: _Finally._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will try to reply to any comments after this chapter. If I don't for whatever reason, know I have read it. :)


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